Algae Farming and Arizona Agricultural Laws

Anticipating the growth and success of algae farming in Arizona, Tucson lawmaker Rep. Matt Heinz of Arizona District 29 has introduced two bills (HB 2225 and HB 2226), sponsored by Rep. Russ Jones of Arizona District 24, that will commercialize and tax alga-culture like any other farm-produced product and allow Arizona universities to continue research in biofuel technologies.

So, what is “alga-culture?” Alga-culture is essentially algae farming; it is the process of raising algae, a microscopic plant that creates biomass from photosynthetic processes, and then converting the biomass into hydrogen or biofuel. HB 2225 would redefine agricultural land use to include alga-culture for the sole purpose of research, development, and production of commercial biofuels on state trust land—land that is intended to benefit public schools and institutions. HB 2226 would widen the tax definitions of agricultural real property by including lands dedicated to alga-culture, making property that is used for raising algae taxable land. To clarify, the bills cover only the cultivation aspects of algae production, not the oil extracting processes associated with the production of biofuel.

Alga-culture does not yet have a strong presence in Arizona, but with the innovative and exciting research taking place at Arizona State University, University of Arizona, and a few new organizations like Gilbert-based Heliae, a company that produces algae-based jet fuel, there is a growing awareness of the potential energy solutions algae provide. HB 2225 and HB 2226 would better enable research endeavors for institutions like Arizona State University (ASU), home of the state-of-the-art AzCATI research facility, and University of Arizona (UA), who have already begun collaborating with ASU on the ARID Raceway algae test bed system. Find out more about the partnership and funding sources in a previous post we wrote on the ARID Raceway.  

Both of these bills provide a great opportunity for Arizona’s economy, education, and energy infrastructure. If these bills pass, alga-culture will be more attractive to farmers because production costs will be cheaper, and university research will be more appealing to potential investors.  Both Rep. Jones and UA researcher Peter Waller discussed that incorporating algae farming into the commercial agriculture industry would create both an alternate, renewable energy source and Arizona-based jobs. Milton Sommerfeld, an ASU researcher located at AzCATI and director of ASU’s Laboratory of Algae Research and Biotechnology (LARB), noted that alga-culture laws would open Arizona’s agricultural landscape, produce local jobs, and attract leading industry in related fields.

Sommerfeld said, “Algae is a crop. You have the same types of problems and challenges as you do with other crops. You’ve got to have good seed material and good technology to be able to process it. You have to have a place where you can grow it.”

Sommerfeld noted that though he thinks it’s possible algae-based fuels could be available to purchase at gas stations in as little as 2022, the research and capabilities to commercialize it depend on the support and commitment of both government and industry.

While the bills have almost unanimous bipartisan support, one lawmaker, Rep. Frank Pratt of Arizona District 23 and chairman of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, voted against HB 2225 on account of it being “premature.” He reasons that while algae farming may gain momentum as a potential future energy source, Arizona has not yet produced the alga-culture operations necessary to require a broadening of agricultural land use.

“We’re making a bill for an industry that does not exist,” he said.

However, the news has been rife in recent months with airplanes completing successful flights using fuel sources made at least in part with algae-based jet fuels. Here are just some of the airlines and their success stories: Continental (LA Times), United (CNN Money), American and Alaskan (Inhabitat). Sapphire Energy, Solazyme, Dynamic Fuels, Origin Oil, and Arizona’s own Heliae are just some of the companies that have developed partnerships to continue producing algae-based fuels.  It seems there is, in fact, a very real and growing algae-fuel industry that Arizona, given its climate and research capabilities, should be in the forefront of developing and utilizing.

Additionally, AzCATI has just expanded its alga-culture production facilities and is now the world’s largest algae test bed facility in any university or national lab. The Grand Opening will be held on Tuesday, February 21^st, 2012 (RSVP required). Governor Jan Brewer, a supporter of algae research at AzCATI, will attend as a speaker and participant in the ribbon cutting ceremony. There will be additional speakers, facility tours, and the opportunity to speak with some of the researchers.