# USDA Energy Research, Education, and Extension

#  Strategic Plan[^1]

**Role:**

*Lead* Research, Education, and Extension programs for *sustainable
production of agriculture-based and natural resource-based renewable
energy and efficient use and conservation of energy*

*... for the benefit of rural communities and the Nation*

**Vision:**

***(External to USDA)***

***"Growing a clean, efficient, sustainable energy future for
America"***

We have a vision that in 5 years the United States will have:

-   Agriculture- and natural-resource-based energy that enhances
    stewardship of our environment.

-   Sustainable, secure, renewable energy sources

-   Vibrant and energy-efficient rural communities

***(Internal to USDA)***

***"USDA \-- a recognized leader in innovative energy solutions"***

We have a vision that in 5 years the United States Department of
Agriculture will have:

-   A workforce with expertise and foresight to address renewable energy
    challenges

-   Robust partnerships with Federal agencies, universities and the
    private sector

-   A fully integrated, systems approach to national and regional energy
    needs

**Goals:**

***(Our (REE) Focus for the Next 5 Years)***

-   Sustainable agriculture and natural resource-based energy production

-   Sustainable bioeconomies for rural communities

-   Efficient use of energy and energy conservation

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-   Workforce development for the bioeconomy

# Introduction to the USDA Energy Research, Education, and Extension Strategic Plan

Securing America's energy future is among the most important challenges
in today's current events and agriculture can play an important role in
bringing about energy solutions. The USDA Research, Education, and
Economics (REE) mission area strives to create public benefit through
both internal activities and partnerships with other USDA agencies,
federal agencies, university partners, non-governmental organizations,
and the private sector. To this end, REE has developed the USDA Energy
Research, Education, and Extension Strategic Plan (Plan) that is
presented here. The Plan builds upon the many excellent energy-related
activities and programs undertaken by the REE agencies and partners.

The Plan will be used to establish focus and facilitate collaboration by
providing a unifying vision and goals for energy activities in a
cohesive package that assists agencies and individuals to better
understand the role of agriculture's research, education, and extension
programs and activities directed toward the goals of sustainable
production of energy and biobased products, energy use, and energy
conservation. USDA defines sustainability as satisfying, now and over
the long term, our Nation's needs for food, fiber, feed, and fuel, while
at the same time maintaining or enhancing environmental quality, rural
economic vitality, and quality of life. The Plan recommends a holistic
approach that includes whole life-cycle assessments/analyses that
encompass interdependent-systems approaches to bioenergy and biobased
product technologies, adoption processes, decision support systems, and
educational programs. The Plan encourages technologies that minimize
disruption to existing markets for food, feed, and fiber. These
technologies will affect a diverse range of feedstocks and biofuels,
with emphasis on regional and local impacts.

In January of 2007 an aggressive program was initiated to energize all
in the REE system to focus on energy. Planning and evaluation activities
led to a September, 2007 strategic planning workshop. The workshop
brought together over 100 science and administrative leaders from the
REE mission area agencies (Agricultural Research Service \[ARS\],
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service \[CSREES\],
Economic Research Service \[ERS\], and National Agricultural Statistics
Service \[NASS\]), non-REE USDA agencies, other Federal Agencies (e.g.
Department of energy \[DOE\], environmental protection Agency \[EPA\])
and University partners, especially the Land-Grant University (LGU)
system. This draft Plan represents the principal outcome of the
workshop. The Plan has been circulated to all the REE agencies and the
university partners. Suggestions received were incorporated into the
Plan. It was recognized at the workshop that the pace of technology
development in the energy sector is accelerating. Consequently, the Plan
will be subject to ongoing reassessment

The REE Energy Research, Education, and Extension Strategic Plan
provides a transparent view of REE's proposed activities in energy
research, education, and extension. The Plan is intended to facilitate
interagency, university and private sector coordination and cooperation.
The main objective is to pursue reliable and sustainable sources of
agriculture-based energy and biobased products, promote the health of
rural communities and provide responsible stewardship for our natural
resources for generations to come. The Plan is ambitious, but it
identifies realistic goals that can be achieved over the next five
years. It incorporates the significant achievements and the expertise
that the REE agencies and university partners have already brought to
the renewable energy arena. The Plan focuses on areas where the REE
mission agencies and universities have unique capacities and resources
that will complement those of other agencies within and outside USDA.

**These unique capacities and resources include:**

# Regional and local outreach

-   **Genetic resources, collections and crop breeding/genetics/genomic
    expertise for feedstock development**

-   **Systems approach to feedstock development, production, and
    conversion**

# Feedstock logistics (harvest, transportation, storage, and pre-treatment)

# The use of animal manures, crop & forest residues, and other residuals as feedstocks

# Development of biobased products and value-added co-products

-   **A network of dedicated laboratories for performing basic and
    applied research which serve the technology needs of current and
    future USDA stakeholders**

# Sustainability

-   **Environmental**

-   **Social**

-   **Economic**

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-   **Integration of basic and applied research, education, and
    Cooperative Extension in land-grant universities**

-   **Integration and coordination of activities among the REE agencies
    (ARS, CSREES, ERS, NASS)**

We now have a Plan and it is ready to be circulated beyond REE. The Plan
can be viewed at the REE web site:
[[http://www.ree.usda.gov/]{.underline}](http://www.ree.usda.gov/)

If you desire to comment on the Plan, please send an email to:
<REEEnergy@usda.gov>

**The REE mission area will develop clear leadership and a
high-performing organization to accomplish the following 5-year
objectives:**

-   USDA Energy Research, Education, and Extension Strategic Plan is
    recognized for its innovation across REE, USDA, Federal agencies,
    Congress and university community.

-   USDA Energy Research, Education and Extension Strategic Plan and
    programs are incorporated into U.S. national energy strategy and
    action plans.

-   Successful implementation of all initiatives, with outcomes
    continuously re-evaluated and executed for maximum achievement.

-   A strong network of partners with a shared vision is in place.

-   Vibrant and effective public and private partnerships focused on
    specific issues with defined scopes exist at the national, regional,
    State, and local levels.

-   Organized educational partnerships, including youth and adult
    education as well as college curricula are in place.

-   Well-established marketing partnerships with scientific,
    educational, and industrial organizations are functioning. These
    partnerships will ensure high visibility for REE efforts and provide
    awareness of emerging issues.

**The REE mission area will achieve the above 5-year results using the
following key strategies:**

-   Align internal agencies and partners (LGUs) and external partners
    (e.g. Forest Service \[FS\], Natural Resource Conservation Service
    \[NRCS\], DOE, EPA, industry), and then identify and recruit
    external partners based on shared vision and needs with regard to
    specific topics and functions.

-   Use existing energy committees and initiatives to promote the Energy
    Plan and programs (e.g., ABBREE, BBCC, Energy Council, Biomass R&D
    Board, NAREEEAB, BMTAC).

-   Initiate joint planning that will result in progress through
    collaborative work.

-   Facilitate the process of developing voluntary, stakeholder-driven,
    and credible certification systems to ensure sustainability of
    bioenergy and biobased products.

-   Convene an annual REE bioenergy summit to both maintain buy-in of
    the Plan and track implementation of programs as well as to identify
    new and emerging opportunities.

-   Demonstrate incentives for partnerships with prospective and current
    partners by surveying what has worked historically.

-   Take full advantage of USDA's communication infrastructure (e.g.,
    CSREES' E-zine and Partners video, ARS' *Agricultural Research*
    periodical).

The REE Energy Leadership Team will establish mechanisms for
accountability and tracking progress for the Plan across USDA/REE. Other
important activities over the next 24 months will include the following
(note: Champions represent parties responsible for implementation):

-   Establish semi-annual (or quarterly) review of coordination
    activities with Biomass R&D Board, Energy Council, BBCC. (Champion:
    Asrar \[ARS\])

-   Continue the monthly Intersection of Agriculture and Energy seminar
    series. (Champion: Bailey \[CSREES\])

-   Establish a one-stop USDA Bioenergy Website (work with Rural
    Development \[RD\] on existing USDA Energy Web page and Matrix).
    (Champion: Peter Young, \[NAL, ARS\])

-   Establish eXtension Communities of Practice to engage users of
    energy information. (Champion: Greg Crosby \[CSREES\])

-   Plan and conduct BioEnergy Awareness Day II, (BEAD II). (Champion:
    BBCC)

-   Convene REE Energy Leadership Team meeting (champions and
    co-champions) to develop a 5-year action plan and schedule regular
    Implementation Team review meetings. (Champion: Fischer \[REE\])

-   Convene partnership summit to build a shared vision and identify
    areas for collaboration. (Champion: Goldner \[CSREES\])

-   Communicate and promote the plan internally and externally.
    (Champion: Fischer \[REE\])

-   Develop, in conjunction with the LGUs, a comprehensive inventory of
    all scientific, educational, and industrial bioenergy organizations,
    and establish Web-based databases of key partners and contact
    information. (Champion: Young \[NAL, ARS\])

-   Establish an advisory group to address the legal, policy, and
    functional aspects of interagency synergies. (Champion: Fischer
    \[REE\])

-   Initiate 30-second spots to highlight the USDA/REE focus on energy
    via public service and other television outlets (e.g., RFD-TV).
    Identify additional media outlets for publicizing USDA/REE energy
    and biobased product activities. (Champion: TBD, with USDA Office of
    Communications)

**USDA Energy Research, Education, and Extension**

**Strategic Plan**

# Goal 1: 

# Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resource--based

# Energy Production 

# 

**Results by 2012:**

-   A single portal for data systems supporting comprehensive economic
    and environmental models that address the key issues and guide
    decisionmakers.

-   Whole life-cycle analyses of at least two potential regionally
    appropriate production systems.

-   High quality, cost effective feedstocks are developed.

-   High quality, cost effective feedstocks are sustainably produced
    following REE science-based conservation plans.

-   Demonstrate at least two scalable conversion technologies suitable
    for regional energy production.

-   Sustainable integrated harvesting, transportation, storage,
    conversion, and distribution systems exist.

-   Analysis of environmental and economic impact of bioenergy
    production will have been conducted at the regional and national
    levels.

-   Analytical tools have been developed to assess the site-specific
    impacts of bioenergy feedstock production.

-   Decision tools are available to help farmers, energy producers, and
    rural communities consider their participation in alternative-energy
    production systems.

-   Comprehensive databases of feedstock characteristics are publicly
    accessible.

-   Voluntary, stakeholder-driven, and credible certification systems
    are in place to ensure sustainable bioenergy production.

**Key Strategies:**

-   Evaluate existing and develop new economic and biophysical effects
    models to assess the sustainability of regional production of energy
    and products.

-   Assemble a critical mass of genetic resources, biological
    information, and expertise to develop one or more sustainable energy
    biomass crops or crop mixtures for each region.

-   Identify, charge, and seek funding for multidisciplinary teams that
    will develop genetic, production, harvesting, storage, and
    conversion technologies and methods to support energy and coproducts
    availability; and for the development of subsequent educational
    strategies to facilitate adoption.

-   Utilize tools and partnerships to facilitate research and education
    issues (i.e., DOE for scalable technologies, Sun Grant Initiative
    (SGI) and DOE on regional biomass studies) and to inform decisions
    at the local, regional, and national levels.

-   Identify and use metrics for environmental, economic, and social
    concerns to guide activities and research.

-   Leverage existing agricultural and natural resource production
    expertise and technology.

-   Build and assess databases to capture core elements of production
    impacts onsustainability.

-   Develop risk mitigation and decision support systems.

-   Facilitate development and adoption of credible certification
    systems to ensure sustainability of bioenergy.

**Goal 2: Sustainable Bioeconomies for Rural Communities**

**Results by 2012:**

-   Decision tools are available and training in their use is provided
    to all farmers, rural communities, and processors anticipating
    bioenergy production systems. Decision tools are available to policy
    makers supporting future industry development, including the
    sustainable production and marketing of biobased products and
    co-products.

-   Cooperative Extension educators are fully trained to support
    farmers, processors, and rural communities participating in the
    bioenergy/bioeconomy as well as those who must make major business
    strategy adjustments due to the emerging bioeconomy.

-   eXtension Communities of Practice are formed to support farmers,
    processors, and rural communities participating in the
    bioenergy/bioeconomy.

-   Biobased products and bioenergy coproducts have been evaluated for
    sustainability and market potential for regional integrated
    bioeconomies.

-   Those farmers, communities, and processors displaced by a growing
    bioenergy industry in transitioning to new viable economic
    activities are assisted.

**Key Strategies:**

-   Use environmental, economic, and social analyses as tools to inform
    activities and research.

-   Train new and existing Cooperative Extension personnel to support
    activities within the rural bioenergy/bioeconomy and transitioning
    agricultural sector.

-   Organize eXtension Communities of Practice and develop web-based
    interactive user information.

-   Evaluate market potential of biobased products and co-products as
    part of the rural bioeconomy portfolio.

-   Evaluate and understand the changing market conditions for
    traditional agricultural commodities.

-   Develop new and enhance existing tools and partnerships to inform
    decisions at local, regional, and national levels.

#  

# Goal 3: Efficient Use of Energy and Energy Conservation

**Results by 2012:**

-   Energy education programs, including eXtension Communities of
    Practice established by Cooperative Extension personnel to reach
    traditional and non-traditional audiences.

-   Energy intensity of agricultural production reduced by 10 percent.

-   Establish a national agriculture- and natural-resource-based energy
    awareness campaign.

-   Promote energy conservation awareness across the United States.

**Key Strategies:**

-   Lead the establishment of a national energy extension network in
    partnership with land-grant universities and Federal agencies.

-   Establish energy Communities of Practice in eXtension.

-   Develop and publicize decision support tools for home energy and
    on-farm energy conservation.

-   Establish an energy garden at the National Arboretum in
    collaboration with a national conservation group.

-   Develop a university-based program for energy conservation
    education.

**Goal 4: Work Force Development for the Bioeconomy**

**Results by 2012:**

-   Triple the number of students in college- and university- based
    bioenergy & bioeconomy education programs.

-   A large proportion of high school students are aware of and take
    action on bioenergy concepts and agriculture and natural resource
    roles in developing the country's energy future.

-   Expertise is available to implement Cooperative Extension energy
    programs across all States.

**Key Strategies:**

-   Establish and publicize a roadmap of educational activities that
    will lead to careers in bioenergy and the bioeconomy.

-   Conduct a workforce needs assessment for the local and regional
    bioeconomy sector, including projections of all roles.

-   Coordinate educational programs where appropriate to develop
    national-scale centers of research and education (K-20 & adult and
    informal programs) delivered through robust distributed educational
    programs in every region.

-   Add significant numbers of graduate- and postgraduate-level grants
    to existing programs with a focus on bioenergy.

-   Increase to at least 50 percent number of LGUs offering bioeconomy
    courses.

-   Increase Higher Education Challenge Grant and emphasis on distance
    education.

-   Increase the number of REE bioenergy curriculum development grants.

-   Establish and increase the number of REE bioenergy internship
    programs.

-   Sponsor training about bioenergy and bioeconomies for existing USDA
    and Cooperative Extension staff.

-   Establish a scientist exchange program, among e.g., ARS, DOE,
    university partners.

**Glossary of Terms and Acronyms**

-   ABBREE Council -- Agricultural Bioenergy Bioproducts Research
    Education and Economics Council advises the Office of the REE Under
    Secretary in the area of bioenergy

-   Agricultural Energy Efficiency -- Reducing the energy footprint of
    agricultural production (reducing inputs such as fertilizer,
    pesticide)

-   ARS -- Agricultural Research Service

-   BBCC -- Biobased Products and Bioenergy Coordination Council. The
    BBCC was established by the Secretary of Agriculture to provide a
    forum through which USDA agencies will coordinate, facilitate and
    promote research, development, transfer of technology,
    commercialization, and marketing of biobased products and Bioenergy
    using renewable domestic agricultural and forestry materials. This
    includes promoting information sharing, strategic planning and
    providing policy advice to the Secretary

-   BEAD -- BioEnergy Awareness Day

-   Biobased Products -- Products determined by the Secretary to  be a
    commercial or industrial product (other than food or feed) that is
    composed, in whole or significant part, of biological products or
    renewable domestic agricultural materials (including plant, animal
    and marine materials) or forestry materials. For the purposes of
    this document, biobased products will be limited to substitutes for
    fossil-based products and to coproducts derived in connection with
    the conversion of biomass to fuel.

-   Bioeconomy -- In the context of this document, bioeconomy is defined
    as economy where the raw materials and energy for industry are
    derived from biomass.

-    Biofuels - Fuels from renewable biological sources (see feedstocks)
    that provide energy for transportation, heating, industrial power
    requirements, and electricity. Biofuels include, but are not limited
    to: ethanol; butanol, methane, biodiesel; hydrocarbons; hydrogen;
    combustible materials (e.g. agricultural or forest waste)

-   Bioenergy -- Energy produced from any form of biomass (e.g. heat;
    electricity; and liquid/solid/gaseous fuels)

-   Biomass - Any organic matter that is available on a renewable or
    recurring basis (excluding old-growth timber), including food and
    feed crops, dedicated energy crops and trees, agricultural residues,
    wood and wood wastes and residues, aquatic plants, grasses,
    residues, fibers, and animal wastes, municipal wastes, and other
    waste materials

-   Biomass Research and Development Board - Co-chaired by the DOE and
    the USDA, the Board is responsible for coordinating Federal
    activities for the purpose of promoting the use of biobased
    industrial products

-   Biomass Board Technical Advisory Committee (FACA)

-   Biorefinery -- Converts agricultural feedstocks into energy and
    biobased products

-   Certification Systems -- Agriculture-based production systems that
    are standardized to promote good stewardship of the environment,
    rural communities, and are economically feasible.  An example is the
    Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certification program, which
    certifies that a forest complies with the internationally-agreed FSC
    Principles of Responsible Forest Management. Another example is
    USDA's Biopreferred Program that will certify products as biobased
    if products meet specific requirements for biobased content,
    environmental, economic and human health effects over a product's
    life cycle.

-   Cooperative Extension System -- A partnership of the USDA through
    CSREES with the nation's land-grant Universities to deliver
    science-based educational programs to the public. The partnership
    extends to the local level through county and city government
    participation.

-   CSREES -- Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Service

-   DOE -- Department of Energy. Two offices work on renewable energy:
    Office of Science and Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable
    Energy

-   Energy Conservation -- Using less energy for a specific task

-   Energy Council -- One of several committees that coordinate
    energy-related activities within USDA. The Energy Council was formed
    to examine departmental programs and authorities, ensuring they fit
    into a comprehensive energy strategy

-   Energy Efficiency - Programs that are aimed at reducing the energy
    used by specific end-use devices and systems, typically without
    affecting the services

-   EPA -- Environmental Protection Agency. The EPS Office of Research
    and Development works on energy-related issues

> ERS -- Economic Research Service
>
> Feedstocks -- Feedstocks refer to materials that provide the biomass
> for conversion to bioenergy. Feedstocks are diverse. The following
> list of feedstocks is from the National Biofuels Action Plan Workshop
> Summary Report
> (<http://www.biofuelspostureplan.govtools.us/documents/NationalBiofuelsActionPlanWorkshopSummaryReportFinal-5-30-07.pdf>)
> **Agricultural Residues** -- Corn stover, various straws and hulls,
> bagasse, orchard prunings
>
> **Forestry Residues**
>
> • Logging slash, forest thinnings, fuel reductions,
>
> understory brush and pulping process wastes (e.g.,
>
> black liquor, other wastes)
>
> • Conventional (e.g., Southern pine)

-   **Dedicated Energy Crops**

> • Starch-based (e.g., corn, grain sorghum)
>
> Sugar-based (e.g. sugarbeet, sweet sorghum, sugarcane)
>
> • Oil crops (e.g., soybeans, canola, other minor oilseeds)
>
> and other oils (microalgae)
>
> • Lignocellulosics
>
> • Herbaceous (e.g., alfalfa, reed canary grass, switchgrass,
>
> large grass)
>
> • Short Rotation Woody Crops (e.g., poplar, willow)

-   **Other Wastes**

> • Industrial (includes food processing)
>
> • Domestic wastewater
>
> • Animal wastes
>
> • Construction/demolition
>
> • Yard waste
>
> • Biosolids (wastewater treatment sludge)
>
> • Waste oils
>
> • Disposal method for invasive species

-   Implementation Group -- Technical group identified and charged under
    the National Team with supporting sustainable regional integrated
    bioenergy development by working with regional implementation teams

-   Integrated Systems Approach -- Multidisciplinary process for
    developing products and processes combining: systems analysis;
    technical design; assessment tools; implementation; and integrated
    management data

-   Land-grant University System -- Land-grant universities provide
    research, education, and extension services through unique
    relationships provided in their founding legislation

-   NAL -- National Agricultural Library (part of ARS)

-   NAREEEAB -- National Agricultural Research Extension Education
    Economics Advisory Board

-   NASS - National Agricultural Statistics Service

-   Natural Resource-based Energy -- Energy produced from forest biomass
    (including residues), wind, and solar (REE has only a small
    portfolio of wind and solar energy projects)

-   NCFAP -- National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy

-   Other Federal Agencies -- Non-REE agencies involved with bioenergy
    (DOE, EPA, NSF \[National Science Foundation\], DOT \[Dept. of
    Transportation\], DOI \[Dept. of the Interior\], DOD \[Dept. of
    Defense\])

-   Other USDA Agencies -- Non-REE agencies involved with bioenergy (FS
    \[Forest Service\], NRCS \[Natural resources Conservation Service\],
    OCE \[Office of the Chief Economist\], RD \[Rural Development\], FSA
    \[Farm Service Agency\])

-   PSA -- Public Service Announcement

-   RD - Rural Development Mission Area

-   RFD-TV -- Rural Free Delivery-television (commercial network
    providing program content of interest to rural communities)

-   REE -- Research, Education, and Economics Mission Area (comprised of
    ARS, CSREES, ERS, and NASS)

-   Regional Production System -- bioenergy production continuums that
    serve specific regions

-   Renewable Energy - Resources that constantly renew themselves or
    that are regarded as practically inexhaustible. These include solar,
    wind, geothermal, hydro and wood. Although particular geothermal
    formations can be depleted, the natural heat in the earth is a
    virtually inexhaustible reserve of potential energy. Renewable
    resources also include some experimental or less-developed sources
    such as tidal power, sea currents and ocean thermal gradients. 

-   Scalable Technologies -- Technologies that are commercially viable
    at relatively small scales (e.g., on-farm)

-   SAES - State Agricultural Experiment Stations System is comprised of
    agricultural experiment stations in each state.

-   Sun Grant Initiative (SGI) - Is a national land-grant program
    authorized to conduct research, education, and Extension programs to
    support the development of a biobased economy. The SGI is tasked to
    facilitate communication and coordination with the Departments of
    Agriculture and Energy to broaden the responsibilities of Land-grant
    institutions beyond traditional agricultural issues. Through,
    development, distribution, and implementation of biobased energy
    technologies, the SGI will: enhance national energy security;
    promote diversification and environmental sustainability; and
    promote biobased economic diversification in rural communities.

-   Sustainability - The term \'\'sustainable agriculture\'\' (U.S. Code
    Title 7, Section 3101) means an integrated system of plant and
    animal production practices having a site-specific application that
    will over the long-term:

    -   Satisfy human food and fiber needs.

    -   Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon
        which the agriculture economy depends.

    -   Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and
        on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural
        biological cycles and controls.

    -   Sustain the economic viability of farm operations.

    -   Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.

-   Systems Approach - A holistic approach that recognizes the need to
    include and examine the connections and interactions between the
    different components that comprise a system so that all the impacts
    of any changes in one or more components can be understood.

-   Whole Life Cycle Assessment - Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a
    process for analyzing the environmental impacts generated over the
    entire life cycle of a product from provision of raw materials to
    final disposal of the product.

[^1]: Developed from the REE Energy Science and Education Workshop held
    in Arlington, Virginia, September 5 and 6, 2007.