Stanford scientists are looking for environmentally benign ways to produce ethanol, methanol and other renewable fuels from plants and microbes. Areas of research include renewable energy from wastewater; new methods for delignifying woody cellulosic biomass; genetically engineering E. coli bacteria to increase production of biodiesel; novel microbial bioreactors that use renewable electricity to generate methane and hydrogen; and analyses of how biofuel crops impact land, water, climate and air quality.