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.
At COP28 in Dubai, the announcement of a powerful carbon standard coalition marked a significant step forward in global efforts to address climate change. The coalition brings together the leading independent carbon crediting standards, including ACR, ART, Climate Action Reserve, Global Carbon Council, Gold Standard, and Verra.
The standards plan to establish a structure to continue exchanging knowledge to improve their crediting programs, better assist activities that bring about mitigation and real community benefits, and offer strong mechanisms for countries to implement their Article 6 strategies.
The organizations will establish a structure to maintain ongoing support for unbiased and strong evaluation of crediting programs to guarantee they adhere to the most rigorous credit standards.
They endorse the efforts of the ICVCM in setting minimum benchmarks for credit quality throughout the market and aspire to see these benchmarks increase in the future.
Their efforts will focus on harmonizing criteria based on universal principles for the measurement and recording of removals and reductions. They will also strive to prolong the effectiveness of CO2 sinks and provide insurance against reversals.
Another aspect of their shared effort will focus on developing measures to emphasize the positive impact of projects on communities, highlight advancements in sustainable development, and prevent negative consequences. Additionally, they will aim to enhance the transparency surrounding CO2 credits and facilitate the transfer of financial resources to developing nations.
{KXLG -Watertown, SD} One remains in the pipeline construction field as Navigator’s pipeline project is no longer moving forward. Summit Carbon Solutions is still researching ways to progress the project.
During today’s Codington County Commissioners meeting, several landowners in the surrounding area opposed the pipeline construction project.
One of those landowners is Gordon Little….
Little says, “It really got my attention when Summit Caborn sued me.”
Dennis Jones spoke about representing the people of the community….
Jones talks about fossil fuels….
Terry Little farms just South of Watertown….
Navigator CO2 Ventures announced that it is canceling its pipeline construction project in October 2023.
Summit Carbon Solutions and a project by Wolf Carbon Solutions running through Illinois and Iowa are still active pipeline projects.
KXLG News reached out to Brian Jorde, a lawyer for the group LEDR or Landowners for Eminent Domain Reform, and received some PDF slides that are attached to the article below.
In an open letter to President Joe Biden, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Chuy Garcia (D-IL) called for the urgent issue of a federal moratorium on carbon pipelines.
As can be seen in the full letter here, Omar and Garcia are primarily concerned with the lack of unified safety regulations when it comes to the transport of carbon dioxide.
Although they acknowledge the efforts made so far by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to improve such regulations, the main concern is that no federal permitting for CO2 pipelines goes through until the PHMSA safety regulations are finalized.
Signed also by Reps. Jamaal Bowman, André Carson, Raúl Grijalva, Jared Huffman, Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., Barbara Lee, Summer Lee, Rashida Tlaib Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jerrold Nadler, Delia Ramirez, the letter follows a similar one addressed to President Biden earlier and signed by 150 organizations.
The letter is also endorsed by a number of activist and NGO groups, including Food and Water Watch, Sierra Club, Congressional Progressive Caucus Center, the Center for International Environmental Law, Climate Justice Alliance, and others.
The need for a moratorium on carbon pipelines is explained by the fact that existing pipeline regulations were designed to oversee the transport of hazardous hydrocarbon liquids such as crude oil and are not suitable for the transportation of CO2 as a gas or subcritical liquid.
“Communities across the country are opposing these carbon capture pipelines because they understand the risks they pose to their health and safety. We applaud Representative Omar and Representative Garcia for leading this effort to stop dangerous pipelines from transporting carbon dioxide through communities. President Biden needs to use his authority to immediately enact a moratorium on permits for these dangerous projects,” said Jim Walsh, Policy Director at Food & Water Watch.
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.
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.
