The use of biomass in lieu of petrochemically-based feedstocks and energy carriers, has the potential to reduce a host of environmental threats. Advances in biotechnology have made this technology pathway both more cost-effective and potentially "greener". Several recent studies, however, have cast doubt on the environmental desirability of bio-based materials, highlighting the need for systems-based analyses.
The goal of this special issue is to examine the environmental implications - good and bad - of increased use of bio-based materials and fuels, including biopolymers, bio-ethanol, biodiesel and bulk commodity chemicals and intermediates derived from biomass.
The deadline for submissions is **December 2, 2002**.
This special issue will be edited by Professor Robert Anex of the Institute for Science and Public Policy and the School of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Oklahoma, USA and peer reviewed through the Journal's established procedure.
The JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY is an international peer-reviewed quarterly, owned by Yale University and published by MIT Press.