Identifying new criteria for assessing the impact on the ecosystem generated by the establishment of Jerusalem artichoke crops on difficult and floodable soils

Florin Nenciu,Simona Isticioaia,Gabriel Nae,Gheorghe Matei,Gabriela Milian,Iulian Dumitru,G.P Negreanu,C Ertekin,N.V Vlăduţ,M Tazerout

doi:10.1051/e3sconf/202128603022

Abstract

Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) is a technical plant that manages to adapt very well to unfriendly environments, even in polluted or poor in nutrients soils and may serve in the near future as an important raw material for the food, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. Furthermore, the plant is growing rapidly, producing large amounts of biomass and offers the possibility to be harvested up to 2 times a year, therefore presents a high potential to be used in the field of biofuel production. The plant's capacity to multiply easily by developing small tubers in the soil, allowing the production of economically advantageous crops, can be considered an advantage for biofuel producers, however this feature might be a drawback for agricultural land owners considering the very invasive behavior. The present paper aim to assess two Jerusalem Artichokes crops established on marginal soils, assessing productivity and the extensive impact on the ecosystem, paying a special attention to plant invasiveness tendencies.

Highlights

The biofuels market has grown rapidly in recent years, due to the global goal of limiting the negative effects produced by the widespread use of fossil fuels
In order to meet the increased demand for raw material needed to produce biofuels, very large areas of fertile land have been cultivated with energy plants, creating pressure on the land requirements
Establishing and evaluating Jerusalem artichoke crops Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus), is an herbaceous perennial plant that has a high productivity of tubers rich in inulin, which is a fructan polymer [15]

Summary

Introduction

The biofuels market has grown rapidly in recent years, due to the global goal of limiting the negative effects produced by the widespread use of fossil fuels. The need to produce large quantities of high-quality biofuels for partially or completely replacement of fossil fuels in global energy production, puts considerable pressure on the use of several plant species with a high potential to be invasive, that can harm either the native species or the ecosystem as a whole [4]

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Conclusion