Go for ‘Green Gold’

With the recent surge of interest in biofuels, all-out efforts are on to cultivate biofuel crops. Agricultural experts are of the opinion that since the area of biofuels is still in its nascent stage, more studies are needed. Here is a realistic look at the potential of biofuels and the confusion farmers are dogged with.
Currently, 73 per cent of petroleum products are being imported, and this figure is likely to go up to 85 per cent by 2025. Around Rs 150,000 billion ($ 3,125 billion) is spent annually on oil imports alone! The price of a barrel of oil has gone up from $40 to $67 in just two years. The nation’s rapidly growing economy is hungry for more energy.
Enter biofuels. Derived from oilseeds, edible and otherwise, used locally by communities for, these alternatives are seen as the ideal candidates to step into the demand-supply gap. Countries like US, Brazil, Canada and EU have incorporated bio-fuels into their national energy portfolio. Others are looking at it for use in the transport sector.
India has also tentatively stepped into the area with transport: the state-run KSRTC has been using biodiesel to run some of its fleet. In 2002, the Centre laid out a roadmap for the implementation of bio-fuels in India. The Centre has made it compulsory to blend ethanol (one of the biofuels) into petrol from this year on, but procurement of ethanol is low so far.
Not only do biofuels promise significant savings to the nation, it also attracts foreign investment through the CDM mechanism, being an eco-friendly fuel.
Biodiesel is safer than normal diesel. Emissions are lower with oxygen being generated as one of the by-products. Most biofuel plants are suited to the climate in India, can be intercropped, grown on any soil, has high carbon sequestering ability, apart from many more benefits.
Above all, the single most important aspect of these biofuel plants is the fact that they can grow in the most unfriendly environments. Wastelands with scarce rainfall and temperatures as high as 40 deg C can be turned into potential oil fields!
Amar Narayana, Deputy Commissioner, Chitradurga (Karnataka), spoke about the success story of Molakalmur and Challakere taluks where cultivation of the Honge species has proved that the plant—which is drought-resistant—is a farmer’s friend. A native species that bears oilseeds, the Honge does not even need water, he said. Under a cultivation scheme, 2.2 million saplings were planted in a year and there are plans to go up to 10 million, he added. Considering that there is 780,000 hectares of wasteland in the State, the scope for biofuels is vast.
The State Department of Agriculture has initiated an ambitious programme of planting 6 million seedlings of Jatropa and Pongamia in the wastelands. It has conducted training for farmers and extension workers in 3000 hectares, informed Dr K V Sarvesh, Additional Director of Agriculture, KSDA. Two model biofarms have also been set up. The Rs 370 million project of a bio-fuel park at Hassan has the objective to establish plots, plantations and expelling units at village and community levels, over a decade.
All these activities were started some four years ago by identifying oil yielding trees like Pongamia, Neem, Jatropa, Simarouba and Hippe as well as some other species like Sivagi, Nagasampige, Kotte and Arattu. Elite varieties were identified and 6 million seedlings were disbursed, free of cost.
If anything, this proves that the area of biofuels is nascent and needs to be studied more conclusively. But what is the response from the farming community, the most crucial cog in the wheel of the biofuel economy in the state? There is confusion, despair, anger, disappointment, but a keenness to learn. This was evident at a recent workshop on biofuels that saw a large number of practising farmers turn up.
Why do you paint such a rosy picture about biofuels, asked one farmer. “You did it with vanilla and we suffered. Please tell us the problems we may encounter and give us all the details.”
“They make us grow some crops and when we need help, they leave us in the lurch,” despaired another.
A particular grouse was about Jatropa, the biofuel plant much touted by experts, even before its characteristics were sufficiently studied. “You told us it needs no water at all. Now you are saying we must water it. When we have no drinking water, how are we to water the plants?”
At the same workshop, Dr S J Patil from UAS, Dharwad, while presenting results from research studies, noted that Jatropa (as with some other species) needed some amount of water and fertiliser, at least in the initial years. He also cautioned that it would be at least five years before the Jatropa (or any other biofuel) yields seeds. In the first three years, indeed, there are no returns and costs can run up to Rs 3000 per hectare. However, in eight years it is possible to make around Rs 20,000 per hectare.
Another farmer said that his labour cost was more than his returns. In one hectare if you can have 2000 plants, you can be assured of good returns, according to experts. At a very low estimate of 3 kilos of seeds from one tree and a conservative buying price of Rs 6 per kilo, the biofuel plants are more profitable than rice or wheat.
Prof Balakrishne Gowda, UAS, Bangalore, stresses the need to impress farmers not to grow biofuel plants on fertile lands but only on the boundaries or in wastelands. “It should not be any farmer’s sole livelihood.” He also advocates growing many species instead of only one.
More studies are needed, especially on Jatropa, which is a genetically heterogenous species where each plant can give a different yield. Also, since harvest time for Jatropa and Neem coincide with the monsoon, collecting and drying becomes a problem. Comparative studies of various species have been taken up at the agricultural universities: opinions differ on the best choice. But, going by long-term studies, Simarouba is one species that has been studied extensively.
Dr Syamasundar Joshi and Shantha Joshi have spent years with the plant in their field plots at UAS, Bangalore.
“If we cultivate Simarouba in our wastelands, I am sure we can do away with all our oil imports, both edible and non-edible, in 20 years.”
The oil is almost on par with olive oil in terms of its health benefits, he says, noting that with an annual production capacity of 1000-2000 kg of oil-bearing seeds per hectare, the versatile crop can not only solve the edible oil shortage but more than pitch in as a biofuel. “How much edible oil do we need? With its capacity, we can harness it in every way.”
The oilcake is rich in nitrogen while the leaf extract is used in curing malaria and viral infections. The fruit pulp can be used to make juice and jam while the shell of the seed can be used in hard board industry. The wood makes ideal timber for furniture.
Most biofuel plants need cultural practices like working the soil, water and fertiliser inputs, deweeding, etc. Productivity is still poor and farmers need to make a choice if going for large scale cultivation, as also which species to grow.
Biofuels should not be seen as an alternative crop, but as one suited for wastelands. While the hardier species may grow without any help, it is common sense that the better the nutrients in the soil, faster and better will be the growth. Above all, this is an area where immediate returns are not available but after five years or so, the returns are guaranteed for a lifetime.
The farmers have to be made aware of these aspects before being encouraged to harvest the green gold.
—Jayalakshmi K