Date of this Version Nebraska is now the second-largest producer
of corn ethanol in the U.S. This is largely because of the
state’s comparative advantages. For one, the state’s water
resources enable a huge capacity for irrigation – Nebraska ranks
second in irrigated crop acres, behind California. Nebraska is
the third-largest corn producer in the U.S., with 75 percent of
the crop irrigated. The state also produces nearly 5 million
acres of soybeans, half of them irrigated. Both provide a large,
dependable supply of feedstock for production of ethanol and
other biofuels. Nebraska’s cattle feeding industry, with more
than 4.5 million head on feed, utilizes ethanol byproducts such
as distillers grains and enables biorefinery systems to attain
high energy efficiency and profitability. This powerful nexus of
agriculture, water and biofuels is highly vulnerable to changes
in climate. The panelists represented a cross-section of these
interests, including a manager of the state’s longest-operating
ethanol plant, a