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Text Box: Agribiotics Phytotechnologies for biofuel and Bioenergy crops

Combining increased biomass production with enhanced phytoremediation using plant associated bacteria

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The key to successful bioenergy production is the generation of plant material (biomass, seeds or lignocellulose) in a low cost, sustainable manner that minimises negative environmental impacts. It is also important that the production of these bioenergy crops does not result in competition for arable land that is used for food production, as this could lead to increased food prices that would result in negative consequences on society.

The production of bioenergy crops, such as Poplar, Willow, Miscanthus and grass, on land that is not suitable for food production, such as land contaminated with toxic pollutants due to industrial activity (brown field sites) would alleviate the competition for clean arable land. This has the added benefit that these plants would stimulate the removal of the pollutants from the soil and so clean up the contaminated site (a process known as phytoremediation).

One of the major problems with growing plants on contaminated land is that plants often remain relatively small, due to the toxicity of the pollutants that they are accumulating. This can lead to reduced biomass and crop yields with obvious implications for bio-energy production. The aim of the Agribiotics project is to reduce this toxicity using plant associated microorganisms that are capable of detoxifying pollutant compounds, or which can increase plant biomass through their plant growth-promoting capabilities.