Screening bioenergy feedstock crops to mitigate invasion risk

The cultivation of plants for the production of hydrocarbon fuels is gaining global momentum. These biofuels offer potential benefits as alternatives to fossil fuels, but mitigating any environmental risks posed by largescale cultivation of bioenergy feedstock (biofeedstock) species poses new challenges: some proposed biofuel crops have become naturalized, and even invasive; the relative risks and benefits of growing monocultures versus polycultures of biofeedstock species require more thorough examination; and prompt development of a robust ecological risk assessment framework and careful screening are needed before these biofuel species are widely cultivated. Greater collaboration between agronomists developing crops for biofeedstock production and invasion biologists could substantially lower the risk of new plant invasions.