We told you a couple months ago about Kudzu, ‘the vine that ate the South’. Kudzu, originally from Japan, was introduced to the U.S. nearly 130 years ago and has since taken over the entire Southeast, with masses of it completely covering trees, fences and buildings. Kudzu has long been thought of as a nuisance, but recent research has revealed that Southeastern landowners might be sitting on goldmines: kudzu can be used to produce energy. A new plant in Tennessee aims to turn the stuff into ethanol, a great alternative to corn since it doesn’t require irrigation.
From Chemically Green:
So what does Kudzu have to do with ethanol? Simply, due to the starch (sugar) content, kudzu can be used to replace corn to make ethanol. Will kudzu take the place of food ingredients being used to make ethanol? A resounding “Yes!” is stated by Mr. Doug Mizell, co-founder of Agro* Gas Industries in Cleveland, Tennessee. Mizell and company co-founder, Tom Monahan, have dubbed the kudzu-based-ethanol, “Kudzunol.” Kudzu is an obvious resource: “There’s 7.2 million acres of kudzu in the south that’s absolutely good to no one,” said Mizell. “It grows a foot a day, 60 feet a season and can be harvested twice a year and not even hurt the stand.”
Agro*Gas plans to break ground on an ethanol producing plant in McMinn County or a surrounding county by end of the year and hopefully begin production in 2009.
The eco-friendly plant will be privately funded. How awesome is it that we can use this ‘weed’, which grows rampant all over an entire region of the U.S. as fuel? Plus, the entire plant is used in the fuel making process, so no part goes to waste, and it won’t be tied to the commodities market, so the price won’t raise and lower in relation to the stock markets. We love it. Go Green Kudzu!
Link [Chemically Green]
Photo credit: Jack Anthony
