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GIS Site Suitability Modeling to Identify Potential Corn Stover Collection Sites in Northern Iowa

Iowa's energy budget can benefit from use of renewable fuels, such as corn stover, a crop residue. To explore the feasibility of using corn stover as a fuel in municipal power plants, Iowa State University joined with the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to create the Value Chain Partnerships for a Sustainable Agriculture. GIS technology was used to create site suitability models to identify potential corn stover collection sites along the Iowa Northern Railway, between Cedar Rapids and Manly. Primary data variables for the 14-county study area included four environmental elements, three physical elements, and three agricultural elements. Spatial analysis included both descriptive and predictive models (suitability, capability, feasibility) and cost surfaces for social costs, environmental costs, and construction costs. Candidate sites resulting from the spatial analysis were evaluated in more detail based on their potential costs and impacts. Results of the modeling indicated that GIS technology is a useful tool in selecting potential sites, but must be followed with more detailed economic and site investigations.