Kudzu Ethanol Plant Planned in Tennessee

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

DIY Video: How To Rock Your Own Seed Bombing Campaign

Seed bomb away!!!

I played a lot of Army when I was growing up. Start with a bunch of 10 year old boys, throw in some Maine woods, some plastic toy guns, and clumps of mud (or grenades as we thought of them) and you’d get a whole weekend of pure fun.

So seed bombing definitely appeals to the 10 year old in me. Seed bombing is the act of tossing balls of clay, dirt, and seeds into vacant lots and other urban areas in need of some green. After a good rain and some time in the sun the seeds sprout out and make that spot of urban blight just a little bit greener.

Check out this DIY video showing the best way of undertaking your own green guerrilla seed bomb campaign.

Via [FreshCut] & [The See3 Blog]

Houses Covered in Gold: When Kudzu Attacks

Earlier this week, we told you about kudzu, the ‘scourge of the South’, a vine that spreads like crazy and has now been found to have quite a few promising uses. It’s being looked to as a possible source of renewable energy, plus it has the ability to leach chemicals out of contaminated soils and has additional food and medicinal uses.

Well, that would mean that these folks are sitting on (or, rather, under - if anyone can even get in the house) a veritable gold mine. This is the sort of thing I see often driving from North Carolina down to my home state of Florida: structures totally taken over by kudzu.

Photographer Jack Anthony has some amazing photos of what he calls ‘natural sculptures’, including an awesome series showing the progression of the kudzu growth over four seasons. No doubt, the owners of this land were unhappy when the kudzu invasion started, but maybe they feel better after the recent kudzu-loving news. Before they know it, they might be standing outside their fences protecting this stuff with shotguns against would-be poachers!

Link [JJAnthony] via [Neatorama]

Photo credit: Jack Anthony

Kudzu: The Cancer of the South, Mankind’s Savior?

I live in the South, where Kudzu stretches for miles and miles. I’ve seen abandoned buildings completely taken over, and forests covered in an eerie Kudzu canopy. The oft-maligned, extremely invasive plant has been called ‘the plant that ate the South’. The idea of Kudzu ever having a positive use would leave many Southerners scratching their heads.

So it’s surprising to learn that Kudzu actually has many benefits - and might even be one answer to the world’s energy crisis.

What would you call a plant that may be mankind’s next great source of renewable biofuels?

That can leech the noxious chemicals out of contaminated soils?

That is an essential component of Chinese traditional medicines; a potential control drug for an alcoholic’s cravings; a plant whose starch makes pies and gravies light and delicious; not to mention a plant that can prevent stream banks from eroding, naturally increase the fertility of depleted farmers’ fields; can be ground up to produce fine paper and is a beloved by goats as forage?

I can tell you one thing - landowners around here would be more than happy to unload tons of this stuff on whoever wants it. That is, unless the greed that is such an ingrained part of human nature takes over and turns it into the next big cash crop. Yeah, that seems more likely.

Link [CBC News]

Photo: Flickr user meshmar2