The Purdue University News Service website (United States) reports that the University has received a research grant amounting to about $1.6 million dollars for conducting a sustainability assessment of biofuel energy crops. The overall goal of the four-year project is to "identify landscapes within a watershed where different types of bioenergy crops can be produced to meet demand and promote environmental sustainability". Research activities will include: (1) development of strategies to meet the demand for biofuel crops while promoting environmental quality and ecosystem health, and (2) conducting a watershed-scale sustainability assessment (in relation to soil erosion, water quality and quantity, biomass yield, profitability and aquatic biodiversity) of multiple crops (miscanthus, switchgrass and hybrid poplar).