New central Iowa opportunities exist for harvesting corn stover in support of cellulosic ethanol plant biomass feedstock needs. Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host a meeting on August 15 to address these emerging opportunities related to stover harvesting and marketing it for this new use. The Corn Stover Harvest Meeting will begin at 1 p.m. in Christy Hall, Story County Extension Office, Nevada.
Stover harvesting can impact economic, agronomic and water quality production factors. This meeting will address many of the positives and negatives of stover harvesting and discuss how stover harvesting can be managed within corn production in central Iowa. Crop producers, land owners, crop consultants, agronomists, service providers and others with interest in stover harvest and its removal from farm fields are encouraged to attend.
New opportunities exist in Iowa for harvesting corn stover, such as big bales of cornstalks, in support of cellulosic ethanol plant biomass feedstock needs.
A look at benefits and challenges related to harvesting cornstalks for stover
University speakers include: Matt Darr, agricultural and biosystems engineering assistant professor; Mahdi Al-Kaisi, Extension soil management specialist; John Sawyer, Extension soil fertility specialist; Antonio Mallarino, Extension soil fertility specialist; Chad Hart, Extension agricultural marketing specialist; Kapil Arora, Extension agricultural engineering specialist; Mark Licht, Extension field agronomist; and Kelvin Leibold, Extension farm management specialist. Industry speaker on the agenda is Dennis Penland, DuPont business development manager.
By attending the meeting, participants will understand the benefits and constraints related to stover harvest based on the research information available to date. They'll learn about the cellulosic ethanol program being implemented by DuPont. And they'll get to listen and ask questions of a panel discussion with producers involved in stover removal from their farm fields.
Advance registration is required if you want to attend this meeting
Prior to the start of the meeting a noon lunch will be sponsored by DuPont Pioneer, provided at no cost to the participants, but preregistration is required. Participants will have the opportunity to interact with industry representatives during lunch and after the meeting adjourns.
There is no fee to attend this meeting. Registration is required to make sure the appropriate number of handout copies can be made along with a correct meal count for lunch. Registration forms are available by contacting the Story County Extension Office, 220 H Avenue, Nevada or calling 515-382-6551, or online at www.extension.iastate.edu/story/. Please use a separate form for each registering individual. Register by 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 9. Walk-in registration the day of the meeting will only be accepted if space is available. Participation at the meeting is limited to 150 registrants.