We're fighting for our homes and our land, and for the safety of South Dakota communities just like yours. But we can't do this alone, we need your help, so if you can, pitch in and let's make some hay.
We're fighting for our homes and our land, and for the safety of South Dakota communities just like yours. But we can't do this alone, we need your help, by being informed and taking action when it matters most.
The South Dakota Governor signed a law amending statutes to regulate carbon dioxide pipelines, allow county property tax surcharges, and establish a landowner bill of rights. The law permits counties to impose a pipeline surcharge on carbon dioxide pipeline companies claiming a federal tax credit. It also establishes various liability, disclosure, and landowner protection requirements for carbon dioxide pipeline operators. The law took effect March 26. [S.B. 201, enacted 03/26/24]
This story was produced by Bloomberg Tax Automation, and edited by Bloomberg Tax staff.
In response, Wolf Carbon Solutions withdrew its application from the Illinois Commerce Commission. It said it would review the project and refile early this year.
The original proposal ran from Linn County, Iowa to Macon County, Illinois
Tomorrow, members of the Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines will meet with residents to talk about what the project might mean for the communities involved.
Bill Davies, a coalition volunteer says the pipeline project, Mt. Simon Hub, could be more dangerous than an oil or methane pipeline. That’s because the highly pressurized carbon might make it more likely to rupture.
“Should there ever be a leak of these pipelines, the CO2 cloud that will be emitted is heavier than air and would spread over the landscape. It would displace all the oxygen and people and animals and livestock would start losing their ability to breathe. And first responder’s vehicles would not work. ”
Davies says another concern people have is that their land will be used for the pipeline, even if they don’t agree to it. Under the 5th Amendment, the government has the power to take property for public use projects.
“Right now the pipeline could gain the right to come in to the property and put in the pipeline by the use of eminent domain, if the landowners do not agree to allow that to happen.”
The meeting will begin at 6pm tomorrow (wed) at the River Valley District Library in Port Byron.
Wolf Carbon Solutions did not immediately respond to WVIK’s request for comment.
Wesley Community Center, 105 2nd St. S., Wesley, Iowa 50483
A FREE public informational meeting geared at protecting private property rights and exposing the hazards from a potential CO2 pipeline will be held this Friday, April 5th from 6 to 8pm at the Wesley Community Center in Wesley, Iowa.
Special guest speakers at public informational meeting will be:
Trent Loos (National Radio Host of “Loos Tales”)
Trent Loos
Jessica Mazour (Iowa Sierra Club Executive)
Jessica Mazour
Kevin Virgil (Iowa 4th Congressional District Candidate)
Kevin Virgil
Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed pipeline faces tough opposition from a broad coalition of Indigenous groups, farmers, and environmentalists, who oppose a hazardous CO2 pipeline that threatens their lives, land, and water sources. Alan Bush, a member of a group of concerned citizens protecting private property and farmland rights, tells the primary purpose of this meeting.
(Click below for Alan Bush #1 audio)
Summit Carbon Solutions is awaiting the decision from the Iowa Utilities Board on whether or not its permit is approved and it will be able to take people’s lands through use of eminent domain. Having failed to persuade enough landowners to cede their land, Summit has resorted to threatening eminent domain and legal action against many Iowa landowners and counties seeking to impose conditions and safeguards around the pipeline.
(Click below for Alan Bush #2 audio)
According to the U.S. and state constitutions, eminent domain is the government’s power to take private property for public benefit. However, Summit Carbon Solutions is a private for profit business. Led by agribusiness baron Bruce Rastetter, the 2,000-mile pipeline would capture carbon from ethanol biorefineries across Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and South Dakota, before injecting and storing it underground in North Dakota.
A recent poll showed 78 percent of Iowans reject the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines. Despite this widespread opposition, the Iowa Senate has refused to consider bills to prevent the use of eminent domain. Bush also explains the #1 reason so many Iowans are against the proposed CO2 pipeline.
(Click below for Alan Bush #3 audio)
This photo shows the spot where a carbon dioxide pipeline ruptured in Satartia, Miss., in February 2020 leading to the evacuation of 200 residents and the hospitalization of 45 others. Media reports show it took over 2 hours for the pipeline company to confirm with the EPA a rupture had taken place. Yazoo County Emergency Management Agency / Submitted
So, if dangerous, why propose a CO2 pipeline in the first place?
Is it really about reducing the carbon score of ethanol and expanding ethanol access to existing and emerging markets?
According to Summit Carbon Solutions, “the project will have the capacity to capture and permanently store up to 18 million tons of CO2 every year, which is the equivalent of removing 3.9 million vehicles from our roads annually.”
However, Bush thinks it’s more about a land grab and abuse of taxpayers.
DES MOINES — Vivek Ramaswamy criticized plans to build carbon capture pipelines across Iowa as an abuse of eminent domain and questioned the climate change goals the pipelines serve to advance at a rally in Des Moines Friday.
The Ohio biotech entrepreneur and Republican presidential candidate was joined by state lawmakers who have led efforts to restrict eminent domain authority for the pipelines, as well as activists who have opposed their construction on their land.
Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks at an event focused on carbon capture pipelines in Des Moines on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023.CALEB MCCULLOUGH
Ramaswamy has focused more attention on the carbon capture pipeline issue this week and has taken shots at Republican figures for not forcefully opposing the projects.
Ramaswamy has struggled to gain support in Iowa polling despite dozens of events across the state in recent weeks. He has pulled in around 5% of support from likely Republican caucusgoers in recent Iowa polls.
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Proposed multi-state pipelines to capture CO2 at ethanol plants for storage underground have faced a coalition of opposition from conservative Republicans who oppose the use of eminent domain as well as climate activists that see the projects as a false solution to global climate change.
Summit Carbon Solutions and Wolf Carbon Solutions are both planning pipelines to capture CO2 at ethanol plants in Iowa and store it in underground reservoirs. A third proposed project by Navigator CO2 Ventures was scrapped last month as the company cited the “unpredictable nature” of the regulatory process.
Ethanol industry leaders say the pipelines are key to allowing manufacturers to sell in states and countries that mandate low-carbon fuel and unlock new markets for sustainable aviation fuel.
Iowa Renewable Fuel Association Executive Director Monte Shaw hit back at Ramaswamy in a statement on Thursday, calling him hypocritical for supporting the Keystone XL oil pipeline, which also used eminent domain.
“Iowans are tired of seeing politicians bow down to petroleum companies while finding excuses to hamstring the future of agriculture,” Shaw said. “Unfortunately, these are the typical games we’ve come to expect from politicians running on fumes.”
Ramaswamy said state Republican leaders have supported the pipelines’ construction despite the opposition of voters.
“Why are the Republican puppets that claim to represent you, why are they supporting this issue, or even worse, ignoring it?” he said.
The GOP establishment does NOT approve of this message & it’s pathetic I’m the only candidate with the stones to say it:
The climate change agenda is a hoax & it’s hurting farmers in Iowa. Here’s how: the U.S. government enacted crony subsidies to reward those who build CO₂… pic.twitter.com/q3h02UwKeo
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has supported the carbon pipeline projects because of their potential to boost Iowa agriculture, but she has said eminent domain should only be used as a last resort.
Other candidates have touched on the issue throughout the campaign, including former President Donald Trump, who told voters in Council Bluffs, “We’re working on that” in response to a question about the pipelines, according to NBC News. As president, Trump signed legislation to support carbon capture technology and extend tax credits for the projects.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, whose state would house Summit’s storage reservoir, has been a major supporter of the projects and said they could transform the agriculture economy for Iowa and other Midwestern states. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley have both expressed skepticism of the use of eminent domain for the projects.
Eminent domain
Ramaswamy said the driving force behind his attention to the issue was the possibility of using eminent domain to involuntarily take land to construct the projects.
Summit, which has asked for eminent domain authority, is awaiting a decision from the Iowa Utilities Board over its application for the pipeline. Wolf has said it does not intend to use eminent domain to build its pipeline, and recently asked to resubmit its application in Illinois.
A sign protesting carbon capture pipelines is pictured at an event held by presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy in Des Moines on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023.
CALEB MCCULLOUGH
Ramaswamy said the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Kelo v. New London, which broadened the federal standard for eminent domain, was wrongly decided and that eminent domain should not be used for private companies.
“I’m a skeptic of eminent domain period, but if the government has some public use, not just private companies, but if it’s a public use, that’s the limited circumstance in which eminent domain is able to be used,” he said.
He suggested that approving eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines could lead to more seizure of private property to achieve climate goals.
Climate change
Another reason Ramaswamy said he opposed the pipelines was the promise that they would lower carbon emissions as a solution to climate change.
The technology has been advanced by some activists as a solution to climate change and a way to create low-carbon fuel, but other climate activists say they are not an effective method of addressing climate change and serve to prop up fossil fuels.
Ramaswamy referred to what he calls the “climate change agenda” as a “hoax,” arguing there is no need to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Ramaswamy said he thinks the severity of global climate change has been overstated and does not pose a serious threat.
“I do not believe that this has a major impact on human flourishing,” he said. “To the contrary, what does, is the bad policies that we’re adopting in the name of it.”
Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks with a voter after an event on carbon capture pipelines in Des Moines on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023.CALEB MCCULLOUGH
Landowner: Ramaswamy “is standing up for us.”
Lisa Dirks, one of many involved landowners who attended the event, said Ramaswamy’s statements about the carbon capture pipelines has made her seriously consider him as a caucus candidate, though she is still undecided.
Dirks’ Cedar County land is on the route of the proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline.
“Vivek now is standing up for us, because this … is a solution to a problem that does not exist,” she said. “And capturing this is only putting money in the pocket of the big boys.”
Public meeting about Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline
The southeast path is the preferred trunkline route. The northeast path is the preferred lateral route. Wolf Carbon Solutions
Attendees look over a map of the proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Nick Noppinger, senior vice president of corporate development at Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Jeff Cook, an attorney with the Iowa Office of Consumer Advocate, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline Wednesday at the Adler Theater in Davenport. NIKOS FRAZIER
Geri Huser, Iowa Utilities Board Chair, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Nick Noppinger, senior vice president of corporate development at Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Scott County Supervisor Ken Croken asks a question during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline Wednesday at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Gail Beech, an attorney with Iowa Utilities Board , speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Inside the Adler Theater during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Gail Beech, an attorney with Iowa Utilities Board , speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Geri Huser, Iowa Utilities Board Chair, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Jeff Cook, an attorney with the Iowa Office of Consumer Advocate, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Nick Noppinger, senior vice president of corporate development at Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
A map of the preliminary pipeline route is displayed during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
David Schmunk, president of Wolf Carbon Solutions, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Geri Huser, Iowa Utilities Board Chair, speaks during a public information meeting on a proposed Wolf Carbon Solutions pipeline, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at the Adler Theater in Davenport. The proposed carbon dioxide pipeline that would connect ADM plants in Cedar Rapids and Clinton to an underground storage site in central Illinois slated to go through Clinton and Scott counties.NIKOS FRAZIER
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said that addressing a proposed carbon capture pipeline could help him become “a major surprise” in January’s Iowa caucuses.
Farmers in the Midwest have opposed efforts to build a series of carbon-capture pipelines in Illinois, South Dakota and Iowa. All four Republican members of the House of Representatives from Iowa sought to protect tax credits for the pipeline network.
“I’ve been very complementary of [Republican] Gov. [Kim] Reynolds, but there is one key issue that matters to a lot of people in Iowa at that not one candidate has had the attempt to take forward and nobody in the aisle establishment has talked about it, which is the carbon dioxide capture pipeline across farmers’ land now potentially using eminent domain to even run the pipeline across land that Iowa farmers don’t want to allow across their land,” Ramaswamy told “Your World with Neil Cavuto” host Neil Cavuto. “People across the state are livid about this. This is a major issue for the grassroots. I’m the only candidate daring to even touch it.”
Regulators in South Dakota denied a permit for a carbon-capture pipeline in September, citing objections from local landowners.
“I’m not one of these people to believe that somebody is automatically 100% correct or 100% wrong on everything,” Ramaswamy continued. “I am praising Kim Reynolds’ plan for education and school choice and otherwise, but she should not hide from this issue. Because I’m speaking to many of those issues that other candidates are not, I think it’s going to be a major sign of a surprise coming into the Iowa caucus.”
Ramaswamy currently draws 5% support in the RealClearPolitics average of polls surveying Iowa from Oct. 22 to Nov. 15, trailing former President Donald Trump, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who suspended his campaign Nov. 12.
“The climate religion has been one of my core issues even long before I ran for president, so this is near and dear to my heart,” Ramaswamy said. “I think more broadly, my brand here with the Iowa grassroots is when I started this campaign with: Speak the truth, not just when it’s easy, but when it’s hard. Speak the truth not just of the Democrats on the other side, but to our own failures and our own Republican Party here at home.”
“One of the things we’re seeing on the ground is that many of the people coming to our events, supporting me and I think this is unique to my candidacy, have never participated in a caucus before,” Ramaswamy continued. “Many of them are young. If they turn out for the caucus, as they are signaling to us they will at a large scale, I think we’re going to deliver a major surprise on January 15th.”
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A FREE public informational meeting geared at protecting private property rights and exposing the hazards from a potential CO2 pipeline will be held this Friday, April 5th from 6 to 8pm at the Wesley Community Center in Wesley, Iowa.
