Feds: Carbon Dioxide Pipelines Are Necessary to Reduce Emissions

June 01, 2023

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by Jared Strong (Iowa Capital Dispatch) Up to 60,000 miles of carbon dioxide pipeline must be installed in the United States to help eliminate the greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to a federal engineer.

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“Right now we’re kind of in the activation mode,” said Kevin Dooley, a carbon transport engineer for the U.S. Department of Energy. “We’re just building out initial sequestration wells … and trying to build those original capabilities to carry us for another 30 years.”

Dooley’s comments on Wednesday were part of a pipeline safety meeting hosted in Des Moines by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, which is considering revisions to its rules for the pipelines. The two-day meeting features experts and others to discuss those rules and gather feedback from residents.

There is about 5,000 miles of carbon dioxide pipeline in the United States.

President Joe Biden wants to eliminate carbon emissions from the nation’s electricity production by 2035 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Capturing carbon dioxide and pumping it deep underground is viewed as an important method to help reach those goals, but opponents of the pipelines argue they will prolong the use of fossil fuels.

PHMSA’s review of its safety rules for the pipelines was spurred by a rupture in 2020 in Mississippi that sickened 45 people. Focuses of that review include geological hazards that can precipitate a pipeline break and modeling to determine who is at risk if a rupture occurs.

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The PHMSA revisions are meant to prevent an incident similar to the breach that happened near Satartia, Mississippi, which released the equivalent of about 31,400 barrels of carbon dioxide. It was caused by a landslide after heavy rains.

Weather conditions at the time allowed the gas — which is heavier than air — to pool in a low-lying area, according to a PHMSA report. It eventually spilled from that area and went toward Satartia. The entire town was evacuated.

PHMSA concluded that the incident revealed a need to address threats to the integrity of the pipelines due to “changing climate, geohazards and soil stability issues.” It also said more must be done to inform residents and emergency responders about what to do when a pipeline releases carbon dioxide.

“The dispersion modeling in Satartia was not sufficient to really encompass the town,” said Amanda McKay, program manager of the Pipeline Safety Trust, who was a panelist.

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PHMSA regulates how the companies construct and operate the pipelines. That includes oversight of the materials used to construct it, welding methods, pressure testing and periodic inspections of the pipelines after they are in operation. The agency does not determine the placement of the pipelines, which in Iowa is decided by the Iowa Utilities Board. READ MORE

Rural Resistance to Carbon Pipelines: Federal Regulators Looking at Potential New Safety Rules for Carbon Dioxide Pipelines (DTN Progressive Farmer)

White House EJ Advisors Agree To Assess ‘Harm’ From CCS Projects (Inside EPA)

Excerpt from DTN Progressive Farmer: While federal officials expect more than 50,000 miles of carbon dioxide pipelines could be built over the next two decades, landowners from Iowa and Illinois at a public hearing this week called on federal pipeline regulators to issue a moratorium on any new carbon pipeline construction until new safety rules are drafted.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) on Wednesday began a two-day hearing in downtown Des Moines focusing on potential new rules for carbon pipelines that the agency could begin drafting later this year.

PHMSA staff made it clear the agency's oversight involves the design, construction, operation and maintenance of pipelines but doesn't address issues such as siting or setbacks for those projects. PHSMA also doesn't get to decide whether to halt pipeline projects, and it doesn't have authority to issue moratoriums.

"We don't get to decide if they exist or not," said Tristan Brown, deputy administrator for the agency.

Right now, the country has about 5,000 miles of carbon pipelines across the country. Yet, due to the drive to take carbon emissions out of the economy, the Department of Energy estimates as much as 60,000 miles of carbon pipelines will be needed over the next two decades.

Midwest states are facing increasing requests for carbon dioxide pipeline permits as companies look to take advantage of tax credits and other federal incentives to capture, transport and sink carbon dioxide into the ground. Most of these pipelines are in the midst of various permitting plans in different states.

The ethanol industry has embraced carbon-capture plans to drive down emissions from biofuels, making Iowa a potential hub for carbon pipelines with at least three pipeline projects adding up to roughly 1,300 miles that will crisscross the state, linking ethanol plants then shipping the carbon to geological formations in either North Dakota or Illinois. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association released studies earlier this year citing billions in financial impacts on ethanol companies in the state if they are not allowed to capture and sequester carbon.

Two companies, Summit Carbon Solutions and Navigator CO2, each have more than 30 ethanol plants and other agricultural industries signed up to take their carbon emissions. The two projects cross multiple states. Summit would sink its carbon in North Dakota, while Navigator would go toward Illinois. A third smaller project in Iowa would run from an ADM plant in eastern Iowa to Illinois as well.

Kevin Dooley, a carbon transport engineer with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), said the country will likely need between 30,000 to 60,000 miles of carbon pipelines to reduce carbon emissions from various industries by 2050. Beyond federal tax credits, Dooley noted DOE also has $10 billion in potential funding for carbon pipeline projects.

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Dan Harvey, a fire chief in Emmet County, Iowa, where both Summit and Navigator plan to cross, said he has not gotten answers from companies about how his group of volunteers would respond to a pipeline rupture. The Satartia rupture, for instance, was nine miles from a shutoff valve and released carbon dioxide for five hours. In rural Iowa, the companies are planning shutoff valves as far as 20 miles apart.

"We do not train for C02 disasters," he said, adding, "They absolutely will not tell you what will happen. Summit has not done one safety meeting yet."

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Jann Reinig was among those who also talked about their property and casualty insurer being unwilling to offer a policy on a carbon pipeline liability on their land. She said the pipelines would essentially take land without providing any protection.

"What business can we properly run or manage without liability insurance?" Reinig said. "The risk is very, very big."

PHMSA proposal for carbon dioxide pipelines: https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/news/phmsa-announces-new-safety-measures-protect-americans-carbon-dioxide-pipeline-failures READ MORE

Excerpt from Inside EPA: A White House environmental justice (EJ) advocacy panel is agreeing to assess potential “harms” from carbon capture and storage (CCS) and other carbon management approaches as the Biden administration rolls out a suite of supports for the technology, even after the advisors previously rejected offering implementation recommendations. LaTricea Adams, chairwoman of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council’s (WHEJAC) carbon management workgroup, tells Inside EPA’s Climate Extra , that the group “essentially wants to pull together all of the concerns”... READ MORE