Increased bioenergy crop production will increase demands on water for agricultural use.  To decrease water use in bioenergy production, animal wastewater, such as swine manure effluent, can be used not only as a nutrient source but also for irrigation.  Recycling of swine manure wastewater could help mitigate the potential environmental impact of bioenergy crop production. Bioenergy crops, such as miscanthus (Miscanthus spp.) and giant reed (Arundo donax), have shown great potential in North Carolina because of their high yields and low input requirements.  However, little is known about their potential to be part of a waste management plan for uptake of nutrients and water of swine lagoons.  Understanding the levels of genetic diversity present among and within these species for their ability to remove nutrients from swine effluent spray fields is important as breeding efforts on development of new cultivars expand.  This study aims at evaluating 38 accessions of these species in a greenhouse pilot study to determine which have the highest potential in order to further evaluate them under field conditions.  Results from this study will provide a foundation for the incorporation of North Carolina bioenergy grasses in a waste management plan thereby increasing the positive environmental impact of the bioenergy initiative.  Furthermore, our results will be helpful for selection of breeding stocks for future cultivar development.