ARS | Publication request: Comment on "Carbon-Negative Biofuels from Low-Input High-Diversity Grassland Biomass"

Submitted to: Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: May 16, 2007
Publication Date: June 15, 2007
Repository URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10113/16234
Citation: Russelle, M.P., Morey, R., Baker, J.M., Porter, P.R., Jung, H.G. 2007. Comment on "Carbon-Negative Biofuels from Low-Input High-Diversity Grassland Biomass". Science. 316:1567b.

Technical Abstract: There are serious flaws in the highly publicized report “Carbon-negative biofuels from low-input high-diversity grassland biomass” (8 December, p. 1598), by our colleagues D. Tilman, J. Hill, and C. Lehman (1). We agree with the contention made by them (and others) that land of marginal value for agriculture could be used for biomass production, and that using herbaceous perennial species on such land is desirable for several reasons. However, the experiment they report does not substantiate their conclusions, their methods and interpretations are questionable, and their estimation of global importance of this approach is unjustified.