FACT SHEET

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Page 1

May 2011

 Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP)

Overview

BCAP, created in the 2008 Farm 

Bill, is a primary component of the 

domestic agriculture, energy, and 

environmental strategy to reduce 

U.S. reliance on foreign oil, improve 

domestic energy security, reduce 

carbon pollution, and spur rural economic development and job creation. 

BCAP provides incentives to farmers, ranchers and forest landowners 

to establish, cultivate and harvest 

biomass for heat, power, bio-based 

products and biofuels.

BCAP addresses a classic chickenor-egg challenge around the start 

up of commercial scale bioenergy 

activities. If commercial-scale biomass facilities are to have sufficient 

feedstocks, then a large-scale energy 

crop must exist. Conversely, if profitable crop production is to occur, 

then viable consumers must exist to 

purchase the crop.

The federal Renewable Fuels 

Standard (RFS) requires 21 billion 

gallons of non-corn-starch biofuels 

in the national fuel supply by 2022 

and new types of biomass feedstocks must be available to meet this 

requirement. Many bioenergy crops 

need several years to become established. Many bioenergy facilities 

need several years to reach commercial scale. BCAP serves as catalyst 

to unite these dynamics by reducing 

the financial risk for landowners who 

decide to grow unconventional crops 

for these new markets.

• With BCAP, crop producers and 

bioenergy facilities can team 

together to submit proposals to 

USDA for selection as a BCAP 

project area.

• If selected, crop producers will 

be eligible for reimbursements 

of up to 75 percent of the cost 

of establishing a bioenergy 

perennial crop. Producers can 

receive up to five years of annual payments for herbaceous 

(non-woody) crops (annual or 

perennial), and up to 15 years 

of annual payments for woody 

crops (annual or perennial).

• Assistance for the collection, 

harvest, storage and transportation of crops to facilities will be 

available for two years, per producer, in the form of a matching 

payment for up to $45 per ton of 

the delivery cost.

Highlights

•	 Expenditures 

Refinements to the final BCAP 

regulations have targeted program 

expenses to a more limited set of materials than were eligible for payment 

under the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) . 

•	 Blue, white and green-collar 

job creation in rural America: 

The Record of Decision on the 

BCAP Environmental Impact Statement estimates that by 2023, up to 

$88.5 billion in economic activity 

and 700,000 jobs could be created.

•	 New energy crops

BCAP reduces the financial risk 

for producers who volunteer to 

grow crops at an unexplored scale. 

Potentially eligible crops include 

switchgrass, miscanthus giganteus, 

fast-growing woody poplar, jatropha, algae, energy cane, camelina or 

pongamia.

•	 Enhanced stewardship and 

conservation measures 

1. Biomass must be collected 

and harvested according to an 

approved conservation, forest 

stewardship, or similar plan to 

protect soil and water quality 

and preserve land productivity 

into the future.

2. Native sod cannot be converted 

under BCAP contracts.

3. Crop collection, harvesting and 

transportation must be in strict 

accordance with invasive plant 

species protections.

•	 Protects existing woody markets 

Biomass may not qualify for incentives if FSA determines that the 

biomass would be diverted from preexisting markets.

•	 Provides feedstock neutrality 

Maintains the 2008 Farm Bill 

definition of renewable biomass by 

supporting the use of both woody 

and herbaceous materials for energy 

purposes. The production of heat, 

power, biofuels, and bio-based products all remain supported by BCAP, 

as required by statute.

•	 Kick-starts liquid cellulosic 

biofuels to meet RFS targets

Provides incentives for the harvest of 

biomass for conversion to cellulosic 

biofuels that achieve 60 percent 

lower lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.

•	 Matching payments for eligible materials. 

1. Subject to the availability of 

funding, provides for matching 

payments to eligible material 

owners at a rate of $1 for each 

$1 per dry ton paid by a qualified biomass conversion facility, 

in an amount up to $45 per dry 

ton. An eligible material owner 
FACT SHEET

Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) May 2011

may be a producer of an eligible 

crop or a person or entity with 

the legal right to collect or 

harvest eligible material. By 

law matching payments may be 

made to eligible material owners 

for a maximum of two years.

2. To qualify for matching payment, eligible materials must be 

collected or harvested directly 

from the land. Materials cannot 

be “collected or harvested” 

after transport and delivery to a 

conversion facility.

3. Woody eligible material collected or harvested outside of 

BCAP project area contracts 

must be a byproduct of preventive treatments that are removed 

to reduce hazardous fuels, to 

reduce or contain disease or 

insect infestation, or to restore 

ecosystem health.

4. Woody eligible material collected or harvested outside of BCAP 

project area contracts must not 

be separated from material for 

higher value products after delivery to a conversion facility.

5. All eligible material must be 

harvested in accordance with an 

approved conservation, forest 

stewardship, or equivalent plan.

6. Matching payments are only 

available for eligible materials sold for a fair market value. 

This requirement replaces the 

NOFA restrictions regarding 

related party transaction and 

makes matching payments 

available to startup and other 

vertically integrated operations, 

but prevents efforts to defeat the 

purpose of BCAP by inflating 

biomass prices to gain higher 

matching payments.

7. Eligible materials do not include 

harvested grains, fiber or other 

commodities eligible to receive 

payments under Title I of the 

2008 Farm Bill; algae; food 

waste or yard waste; or animal 

waste and animal waste by-products including fats, oils, greases 

and manure.

•	 Establishment payments

1. CCC will pay producers up to 75 

percent of the costs of establishing a perennial crop. Eligible 

costs do not include the acquisition of land or equipment. 

Establishment payments are not 

available for annual crops. Annual crops, however, are eligible 

for annual payments.

2. Eligible crops cannot be crops 

eligible to receive payments under Title I of the 2008 Farm Bill, 

or any plant that is invasive.

•	 Annual payments

1. Biomass producers in BCAP 

project areas can receive annual 

payments up to five years for 

herbaceous biomass (annual and 

perennial) and up to 15 years 

for woody biomass (annual and 

perennial).

2. Cropland base and yield history 

applicable to the land enrolled 

in a BCAP contract will be 

preserved.

3. Annual payments are reduced by 

a percentage of the value of the 

crop and any matching payments 

received as follows: 

• (a) 1 percent if biomass sold for 

cellulosic biofuels (60 percent 

lower greenhouse gas emissions)

• (b) 10 percent if biomass sold 

for advanced biofuels

• (c) 25 percent if biomass sold 

for heat, power or biobased 

products

• (d) 100 percent if biomass sold 

for anything other than heat, 

power, biofuels or biobased 

products.

•	 Eligible land

Eligible land for BCAP project area 

contracts include agricultural and 

non-industrial private forestland, but 

does not include federal or stateowned land, land that is native sod, 

or land enrolled in the Conservation 

Reserve Program, Wetlands Reserve 

Program, or Grassland Reserve 

program.

For More Information

For more information on BCAP, 

please visit FSA’s BCAP website at 

http://www.fsa.usda.gov/bcap.

 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) prohibits discrimination in all 

of its programs and activities on the 

basis of race, color, national origin, age, 

disability, and where applicable, sex, 

marital status, familial status, parental 

status, religion, sexual orientation, 

political beliefs, genetic information, 

reprisal, or because all of part of an 

individual’s income is derived from any 

public assistance program. (Not all 

bases apply to all programs.) Persons 

with disabilities who require alternative 

means for communication of program 

information (Braille, large print, 

audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s 

TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 

(voice and TDD). 

To file a complaint of discrimination, 

write to USDA, Assistant Secretary 

for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 

Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, 

Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call 

toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or 

(800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-

8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 

845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay). 

USDA is an equal opportunity provider 

and employer.

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