A variety of political, social and economic factors are driving the increased use of renewable fuels, especially ethanol from abundant, inexpensive cellulosic materials. Pretreatment is necessary to make cellulosics susceptible to enzymatic conversion.   The Ammonia Fiber Expansion (AFEX) process treats lignocellulosic biomass with concentrated ammonia. Recent improvements in AFEX and related processes have driven down the projected cost of producing ethanol from cellulosics to well under $1 per gallon.  Pilot testing of promising cellulosic ethanol technologies, including AFEX, and continued research to further reduce costs are underway.  The new cellulosic ethanol industry will arrive much sooner than most people think.

If this is so, then agriculture is about to be transformed in a way that has not occurred for many decades.  We can shape the future of this new renewable fuels industry if we are careful and wise.  For example, the environmental performance of cellulosic ethanol systems can be managed to provide very large environmental benefits.  These benefits will not occur automatically, but must be thoughtfully designed into the system and then verified.  Also, the demand for biofuels can transform rural America for the better, but only if we design our technologies and policies to make this happen.  Opportunities for rural communities to capture economic value from the biofuels revolution will be outlined and discussed.