Ireland could meet 30 per cent of its entire electricity requirement by planting just 10 per cent of arable land with elephant grass.
Promoted as the ideal plant for biomass energy production, its 4.2m-high fronds could soon be seen all over Ireland.
Elephant grass (Miscanthus giganteus) is more at home on the sides of mountains in Japan, but after planting trials in Ireland and other European centres and also in the US, it emerged as the ideal species for biomass.
"Biomass crops have always been viewed as making a small contribution to energy production," Prof Steve Long, of the University of Illinois, yesterday told visitors to the BA Festival of Science, under way at Trinity College Dublin.
Trials under the hot Illinois sun have shown that easy-to-grow elephant grass can produce a spectacular 60 tonnes of dry biomass fuel per acre. He estimated that excess arable land in his home state, if grown with Miscanthus, could yield enough fuel to cover Illinois' entire electricity demand, including that of Chicago.
"The figure for Ireland is if we used 10 per cent of our arable land we could generate 30 per cent of our electricity requirement," said Trinity College botanist Prof Mike Jones.
If a similar 10 per cent of the EU's lands were put under elephant grass the comparable figure would be 9 per cent of gross electricity production, he added. There are 13 species of this decorative plant, which has high feathery fronds similar to those seen on Pampas grass.
The variety being tested by Profs Long, Jones and colleagues is a hybrid cross between two species. It produces a better plant but also confers the benefit of sterility so there is no pollen to trouble hay fever sufferers.
There have been false biomass dawns before, with great unmet expectations from willow and other "ideal" biomass plants, but Miscanthus is different, Prof Long maintains. It is perennial so it only needs to be planted once and then grows by itself each year. It requires no special treatment and minimal fertiliser inputs.
"Currently, there appears to be no problem with pests and disease," Prof Jones added. "The argument for Ireland is we have more arable land available per capita than other European countries. There is no reason why in 10 years' time this shouldn't be exploited," he said.
The Irish trials were conducted in Cashel, Co Tipperary, Prof Jones said. The grass grows on agricultural land but will also deliver a crop if planted on cutaway bog.
"In terms of Kyoto it would be considered carbon-neutral," Prof Long said.