Untitled Document

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

NOTE ON FORMATTING: When stories are transferred from the Web, certain punctuation marks and other marks in this report don't carry over and result in symbols and other formatting errors. To see or print the story in full without these translation errors, simply click on "full story" at the end of each item."

Total Clips: 5

	Date	Outlet
Biomass ethanol not backyard deal	03/07/2007	Southeast Farm Press
Auburn University President Won't Pursue Two-Year Chief Job	03/07/2007	WSFA-TV
GIPSA Study Flawed	03/07/2007	High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal
Tots and tenure mix at UA: New policy aids teachers who become parents	03/07/2007	Tuscaloosa News
Auburn council Approves funds For Research Park	03/06/2007	WTVM-TV


Biomass ethanol not backyard deal 03/07/2007 Southeast Farm Press		Return to Top
Many Alabamians assume that with the adoption of switchgrass and other forms of cellulosic ethanol crops the state will return to a golden age of farming reminiscent of another day and time. That's not necessarily true, according to two Auburn University experts. Granted, both have little doubt the widespread use of these cellulosic crops, whenever this occurs, will translate into a huge boon for the state's economy, but not in the way most people imagine. "I don't know what the switchgrass sector is going to look like, but I suspect it's not going to look like Grandma and Grandpa Walton on the mountain," says Robert Goodman, an Alabama Cooperative Extension System economist and Auburn University associate professor of agricultural economics. "I think it's going to look more like sugarcane farming in Brazil." By that, Goodman means large-scale, corporate-style farming rather than one patterned after family farming. "It's likely going to be more profitable to grow these types of crops on a vast scale — on 50,000-acre farms with huge machines and very investment intensive operations — nothing like we have now." Sharing this view is Joseph Molnar, Auburn University professor of rural sociology, who stresses that conversion of biomass ethanol is, by nature, "an industrial and not a backyard process." Molnar also believes switchgrass initially may be outdone by another lucrative source of cellulose — wood, which Alabama possesses in abundance. "We already have an existing system for refining and distributing gasoline, and, undoubtedly, corn ethanol and wood-based ethanol will evolve alongside that," Molnar says, adding that the regions best suited to capitalize on this asset are west and southwest Alabama, where petroleum refineries already are located. "These would be natural places to put wood alcohol production facilities because the distribution and technical know-how already are in place," Molnar says. In fact, the ethanol not only could be blended with gas but distributed through existing pipelines, he adds. One thing is certain, Molnar says. Until a cost-efficient means is developed to convert cellulosic materials such as wood and switchgrass into ethanol, Alabama, along with most states in the Southeast will remain "on the outside looking in" — at least, in terms of profiting from the spike in corn-based ethanol use. "We can grow some corn and open some processing plant capacity, but this sort of production is going to occur primarily in the Midwest, with the good soils and high yields." A number of bioenergy experts have pointed to Alabama as an ideal location for growing a new generation of cellulosic-derived ethanol crops — and they're right, Molnar says. "We've got a year-round growing season, which means we could be growing and harvesting these sorts of products — wood and switchgrass, for example — practically all the time." For now, at least, Molnar says all of this depends on whether science can develop the technology to enable industry to capitalize on these sources. "The future really is in the hands of chemical engineers," he says. "If they can find a way to reduce the cost of producing cellulosic ethanol and make it closer to corn-derived ethanol, then Alabama is going to look pretty good. "Alabama — and the Southeast — could be pretty big players in all of this." The Bush administration has vowed to spend billions of dollars to bridge this technological gap. In fact, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns recently announced plans to propose $1.6 billion in new funding for renewable energy, with a focus on cellulosic energy research and production as part of the administration's 2007 farm bill proposals. NOTE: No Web link was available for this story.


Auburn University President Won't Pursue Two-Year Chief Job 03/07/2007 WSFA-TV Associated Press		Return to Top
This AP story was also carried by WTVM-TV, WPMI-TV, WAFF-TV, Gadsden Times and Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. MONTGOMERY, Ala. Auburn University President Ed Richardson says he is NOT interested in becoming chancellor of Alabama's two-year college system. Sources said last week that Richardson had expressed a willingness to take the job after he retires from Auburn, which he is expected to do about the end of June. Interim Chancellor Thomas Corts abruptly quit last week following criticism of him by a majority of state Board of Education over his handling of the job. Richardson said it was true that there had been some talk about him taking over the job, but those discussions occurred before news reports of troubles between the school board and Corts. Corts left the system after board members accused him of not effectively communicating with them. They were also frustrated over problems in the system he wasn't effectively dealing with. Corts was hired in July to replace fired Chancellor Roy Johnson after it was reported that he and his family earned more than 560-thousand dollars in 2005 from jobs and contracts with the system. Board members said last week they hope to have a permanent chancellor by the end of summer or early fall.
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GIPSA Study Flawed 03/07/2007 High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal Staff Report		Return to Top
AU professor of agricultural economics is quoted in this story. OMAHA (DTN) -- According to an R-CALF release, The Grain Inspection Packers Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) recently issued its latest Livestock and Meat Marketing Study, which is seriously flawed. The study continues a tradition of stating as fact the simple declarations of packers or large formula feeders, and it concludes that Alternative Marketing Agreements (AMAs), among other benefits, provide for a reliable and consistent supply of quality cattle. This same declaration was made in the March 2002 report titled "Potential Impacts of the Proposed Ban on Packer Ownership and Feeding of Livestock," conducted by the Sparks Companies, which also was unsupported by any real data analyses. Before any data was analyzed, the contractors for the current study, upon releasing an interim report in August 2005, declared that AMAs were used "to assure high and consistent quality." "In contrast to these statements, publicly available data indicate that the exact opposite situation is true -- that the supply of AMA cattle is more variable than the cash market," said Auburn University's Robert Taylor, Alfa Eminent Scholar and Professor, Agricultural Economics. For example, according to Taylor: Variability of U.S. beef production has not changed appreciably in many decades, even though captive supply has increased to near half of total supply; Captive supply was 2.2 times more variable than supply from the cash market based on GIPSA monthly data for the 15 largest packers, 1988-98; Captive supply was 1.5 times more variable than supply from the cash market based on AMS "additional movement" weekly data, 1994-1998; Tyson/IBP's captive supply was 1.5 times more variable than their acquisitions from the cash market based on weekly data made public in Pickett v. Tyson/IBP, 1994-2002; Captive supply was 3.5 times more variable than supply from the cash market based on GIPSA monthly data for the four largest packers, 1990-2002; Captive supply was 2.4 times more variable than supply from the cash market based on GIPSA "revised" monthly data for the four largest packers, 1999-2002; Captive supply was 1.4 times more variable than supply from the cash market based on MPR weekly data, April 2004 through January 2007. "In spite of these examples that point to AMA supply variability, GIPSA's Livestock and Meat Marketing Study did not offer a single data set, or a single analysis, that supported the industry-wide declaration that AMAs provide a consistent supply of cattle," pointed out R-CALF USA Vice President/Region II Director Randy Stevenson. "Even though the study contractors collected millions of bits of data, they did not use them to prove -- or disprove -- the variability of captive supply. They relied, instead, on the opinions of market participants. That seems to suggest that the study contractors worked toward a predetermined conclusion concerning a reliable supply of cattle. "There is also within the study absolutely no consideration given to other possible methods of attaining a reliable supply," he continued. "Either the cash market or other contracting methods might accomplish that better than AMAs, but the study did not offer any other possibilities. R-CALF USA membership policies support a ban on packer ownership of cattle, with the exception of plants that slaughter less than 100 head per day. Membership policy also defines captive supplies to include any livestock owned by, committed to, or otherwise under the control of, the packer before seven days of slaughter, including non-negotiated transactions and imported cattle and beef. To view additional comments from Stevenson regarding GIPSA and captive supply, see CattleNetwork.com's news feature titled "Five Minutes with Randy Stevenson" at: http://www.cattlenetwork.com/Content.asp?ContentID=110476, or at the "In the News" link at www.r-calfusa.com .
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Tots and tenure mix at UA: New policy aids teachers who become parents 03/07/2007 Tuscaloosa News Adams Jones		Return to Top
When she was getting six college degrees and working, Shadi Sahami Martin was focused on her career. Martin had chosen to be a professor, a career that demands a great deal of time during the close to six-year tenure process. She thought time for children would come later. But Martin, now an assistant professor at the University of Alabama, realized in her mid-30s that time for family was slipping away. "As women, we have biological clocks," she said. “There is the practical end of what you want to do, then there is the reality of what you can really do. You make your choices, and you hope that your university, faculty and dean understand that." For Martin, her boss did understand, granting her a semester without teaching and delaying her tenure review one year. Decisions like that have historically been decentralized at universities, leaving it up to department chairs and deans, who could be sympathetic or see any request for relief as a sign of weakness. To remove the stigma, the university recently instituted a policy to help professors -- male and female -- who want to begin a family while under the watchful eye of tenure review. Like many colleges nationwide, UA now offers a tenure-clock extension that is granted to all untenured faculty members who adopt or have a baby. Professors usually have five years to create a track record in teaching and research, a time heavily scrutinized in the sixth year by a committee. Not earning tenure could mean the loss of a job. "For many women, [pregnancy] often meant the end of tenure," said Natalie Adams, associate professor and assistant dean in the graduate school. “This sends the message that you shouldn’t feel bad if you have to ask for it." Adams led a committee that crafted several "family friendly" proposals. UA’s Faculty Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of the tenure-clock extension policy at its February meeting, giving Provost Judy Bonner the green light to implement it. "You're dealing with a transition in your life, and you don't know how demanding it's going to be on your time," said Martin, now 38. "The important thing is to have that option so you don’t have this clock that's ticking while you are dealing with family transition that adds to your already stressful life." There was a policy on the books that granted extension of tenure, but it did not spell out that maternity and paternity were valid reasons for a delay. In some cases, such as Martin's, it was granted under the older policy. Martin had a baby girl in September, when she was about three years away from tenure review. She asked for a tenure extension before UA’s policy was in place, but not without hesitation. "I thought, 'Should I just work hard and try to do everything I can, or should I ask for what I need during the time of transition?' " she said. "Part of it was trying to figure if there was a stigma attached to [requesting an extensions.]" The movement toward supporting the family choices of non-tenured faculty started during the last decade at the University of California System, when administrators noticed that women were dropping out of tenure-track positions and that policies such as tenure-clock extension were woefully underused, according to Claire Van Ummersen, co-author of a 2005 American Council on Education report about creating flexibility for tenure-track professors. "Women were afraid to take it," she said. "If you take an extra year, there was always this sense that the person had an extra year to work." The UC system revamped its policies to help faculty balance work and life, a move it hoped would attract faculty to California. "Once one of these research institutions sees they have a competitive advantage, other institutions rush to catch up because they compete for the same faculty," Van Ummersen said. By the time Adams' committee was formed, Auburn University already was granting tenure-clock extensions, and, she said, UA needed the policy to attract professors. Other recommendations by the committee have been put in place, such as a wellness program, more space for preschool child care and a health clinic staffed by a nurse practitioner, but tenure delay is probably the most meaningful sign of support for younger professors, Adams said. "Both men and women are very concerned with spending more time with their family," Van Ummersen said. "And universities hadn’t been very family friendly." The Faculty Senate did not vote on one policy the committee recommended this academic year, maternity leave, , because it generated more questions than tenure-clock extension, said Steve Shepard, co-chair of the senate committee examining the policies. "A faculty position is a fairly flexible job," he said. “We just didn't know how to create leave for somebody that doesn't accrue vacation or sick days." Maternity leave could come up next academic year, he said. Martin agrees that her job is more flexible than a traditional 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule. She has remained productive, publishing two articles, since her daughter’s birth. But she and Adams say whether a professor needs the extension is not the issue. "It's a symbolic policy in many ways," Adams said. "It represents that the university cares about you as a person." Reach Adam Jones at adam.jones@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0230.
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Auburn council Approves funds For Research Park 03/06/2007 WTVM-TV Brock Parker		Return to Top
Funding is now available for the first company to relocate to the Auburn University Research Park. The Auburn City Council approved an appropriation ordinance Tuesday night between the Auburn Industrial Development Board and the Auburn University Research and Technology Foundation. The money will be used to help build the park's first building. "The cost of the building will be reimbursed by the State of Alabama. There's $10 million sitting at the state waiting to reimburse this project, so really this is a short term construction loan," said Charlie Duggan, Auburn city manager. The loan will pay for the materials and labor for the first building. The research foundation will now take bids for a company to locate there.
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