Switch grass for cellosic ethanol, a much-hyped crop for the nation's renewable energy future, could have the added benefit of reducing global warming, scientists at the Northern Great Plains Research Lab said Friday.

The lab, a U.S. Department of Agriculture facility just south of Mandan, is studying the benefits and drawbacks of growing switch grass alongside traditional crops like corn and wheat.

Scientists there are finding that switch grass is better than its more common peers in "carbon sequestration," a fancy term for keeping CO2 gas out of the atmosphere. The switch grass does this because 80 percent to 90 percent of it is underground, compared to about 40 percent for wheat.

"The relevance is that, if you can store the carbon lower, you can prevent more of it from getting into the air," said soil scientist Mark Liebig, who helped give a chart-assisted research presentation Friday in front of a lush green switch grass field.

The presentation was set up for Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who was touring the facility to learn more about its research. Conrad touted cellulosic ethanol as an important part of the nation's energy future.

"In the longer term, the solution to higher gas prices is to develop alternative technologies," he said.

Conrad has been a leading advocate of such strategies, proposing in 2006 that the nation set a goal of using 30 billion gallons of ethanol annually by 2025. His proposal was adopted into the pending energy bill, which calls for usage of 36 billion gallons of ethanol a year by 2022.

Accomplishing such a goal would require a drastic increase in ethanol production that exceeds the current expansion possibilities of corn-based ethanol alone. In 2006, the U.S. produced about 4.8 billion gallons of ethanol, according to the Renewable Fuels Association.

Researchers at the Mandan lab are looking to discover ways for farmers to optimize the return of growing switch grass. They are studying what type of land it thrives in, what type of crops it should be planted next to and how it best fits into rotation with other crops.

Jon Hanson, a scientist who heads the lab, said the research will help North Dakota farmers who are looking to grow this new crop. He said switch grass could be good option for farmers who are struggling with their current crop rotations and want to try something new.

"What we want to do is give alternatives to people - some type of method to help people stay in business," Hanson said.

Conrad said North Dakota farmers are well positioned to benefit from the expansion on switch grass because the state is a hospitable growing environment for many different crops.

"When you look at North Dakota, we have an incredible diversity (of crops) here," he said.

Still, the energy and environmental benefits from widespread switch grass growth may be far in the future.

David Archer, a USDA agricultural economist at the Mandan lab, said the product is not yet commercially viable.

Although technology to turn switch grass into cellulosic ethanol is rapidly improving, the end product is not profitable, resulting in little demand for switch grass, Archer said.

He said he expects this to change in the coming years as the rapidly improving technology cheapens the process.

North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson, who accompanied Conrad on Friday's tour, recommended government incentives to kick start the business.

He said a theoretical switch grass incentive program could fully compensate farmers for the first year and then gradually reduce the compensation as the crop begins producing revenue.

"It would be a tremendous incentive to get folks to make that upfront investment and it would be the gift that keeps on giving," he said.

(Reach reporter Jonathan Rivoli at 223-8482 or jonathan.rivoli@;bismarcktribune.com.)