Dry Idea: The Digest’s 2018 Multi-Slide Guide to the Bioeconomy in Arid Regions

The Sustainable Bioeconomy for Arid Regions (SBAR) is a multi-level research project that will cultivate two desert-dwelling crops, guayule and guar, for a sustainable bioeconomy. Scale up to profitable production, however, requires feedstock improvements, expansion of cultivation, agronomic knowledge and practices, and economic crop residue utilization.

Researchers from The University of Arizona (UA), Bridgestone Americas, Inc., Colorado School of Mines (CSM), Colorado State University (CSU), New Mexico State University (NMSU), and the USDA-ARS will collaborate on research, development, and deployment. Partners such as Iowa State University, Pacific Northwest Laboratories, and Mercurius Biofuels will be engaged midway through the project to assess and scale-up bagasse conversion and upgrading to jet, biodiesel, and gasoline.

The SBAR team recently produced this illuminating overview of the consortium and its goals.