ESRI stages Poaceae exhibition in Nantou County

2016/01/22

An exhibition highlighting a Poaceae varietal and its potential use in environmental protection kicked off Jan. 21 at Endemic Species Research Institute under the Council of Agriculture in Nantou County.

Running until Nov. 30, The Wonderful World of Poaceae features 30-plus everyday pieces made of bamboo and silver grass, as well as a detailed display of characteristics and applications in corn, elephant grass, millet, oats, rice, sorghum, sugar cane and wheat.

ESRI Associate Research Fellow Chen Chih-hui said the event aims to springboard the grass into the national spotlight. “The fact that the Poaceae family comprises 10,000 species under 650 genera covering one-third of the global land mass plays an important role in solving food security issues and preserving the environment.”

Corn, also a key player in the food security scene, is seen as possible big league green energy source of the 21st century and beyond, Chen said. “Corn-based ethanol can reduce oil consumption, lowering carbon dioxide emissions to alleviate the impact of the greenhouse effect.”

According to Chen, another useful clean energy resource is elephant grass. “Pennisetum purpureum’s dry biomass can generate 25 times as much energy as the amount of fossil fuel used to burn it in ovens,” he said, adding that this cost-effective solution could help curb the nation’s addiction to fossil fuels.

“The world’s first power plant using elephant grass was established in Brazil seven years ago,” Chen said. “Taiwan needs to catch up with such leader nations in capitalizing on the latest green energy.

“I believe our climate and natural environment is perfect for advancing these energy sources. All we need do is help consumers better understand how plants like Poaceae can revolutionize their daily lives.”

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=241588&ctNode=2194&mp=9)