Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 114 Part 1.djvu/464

 114 STAT. 428 PUBLIC LAW 106-224 -^JUNE 20, 2000 realized losses sustained, but not previously reimbursed, under this title. TITLE III—BIOMASS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2000 Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000. 7 USC 7624 note. SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. This title may be cited as the "Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000". 7 USC 7624 note. SEC. 302. FINDINGS. Congress finds that— (1) conversion of biomass into biobased industrial products offers outstanding potential for benefit to the national interest through— (A) improved strategic security and balance of pay- ments; (B) healthier rural economies; (C) improved environmental quality; (D) near-zero net greenhouse gas emissions; (E) technology export; and (F) sustainable resource supply; (2) the key technical challenges to be overcome in order for biobased industrial products to be cost-competitive are finding new technology and reducing the cost of technology for converting biomass into desired biobased industrial products; (3) biobased fuels, such as ethanol, have the clear potential to be sustainable, low cost, and high performance fuels that are compatible with both current and future transportation systems and provide near-zero net greenhouse gas emissions; (4) biobased chemicals have the clear potential for environmentally benign product life cycles; (5) biobased power can— (A) provide environmental benefits; (B) promote rural economic development; and (C) diversify energy resource options; (6) many biomass feedstocks suitable for industrial processing show the clear potential for sustainable production, in some cases resulting in improved soil fertility and carbon sequestration; I (7)(A) grain processing mills are biorefineries that produce a diversity of useful food, chemical, feed, and fuel products; and (B) technologies that resiilt in further diversification of the range of value-added biobased industrial products can meet a key need for the grain processing industry; (8)(A) cellulosic feedstocks are attractive because of their low cost and widespread availability; and (B) reseeirch resulting in cost-effective technology to overcome the recalcitr£ince of cellulosic biomass would allow biorefineries to produce fuels and bulk chemicals on a very large scale, with a commensurately large realization of the benefit described in paragraph (1); (9) research into the fundamentals to understand important mechanisms of biomass conversion can be expected to accelerate

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