The U.S. Department Agriculture in collaboration with the Energy Department announced that up to $8.7 million in funding will be made available through the Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil by supporting the development of bioenergy feedstocks, biofuels, and biobased products.

The projects funded through BRDI—a joint program through the Department of Agriculture and the Energy Department—will help develop economically and environmentally sustainable sources of renewable biomass and increase the availability of renewable fuels and biobased products that can help reduce the need for gasoline and diesel fuels and diversify our energy portfolio.

The Department of Agriculture and the Energy Department will make up to $8.7 million available through BRDI in fiscal year 2015. Applicants seeking BRDI funding must propose projects that integrate science and engineering research in one of the following three areas: feedstock development, biofuels and biobased products development, or biofuels development analysis.

Funded projects will develop analytic tools that improve the sustainability, environmental quality, cost effectiveness, security, and rural economic development of renewable biomass technologies. Funding will also be used to develop new tools to better evaluate the environmental impact of expanded biofuel production and assess the potential for using federal land resources to sustainably increase feedstock production for biofuels and biobased products.

For more information and application requirements, visit grants.gov under Reference Number USDA-NIFA-9008-004957. Concept papers are due by March 27, 2015, and full applications are due by July 27, 2015.

The Energy Department's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy accelerates the development and deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and market-based solutions that strengthen U.S. energy security, environmental quality, and economic vitality. Learn more about EERE's work with industry, academia, and national laboratory partners on a balanced portfolio of research in biofuel feedstock technologies on the Bioenergy Technologies Office website.