Proposed $4.5 billion carbon pipeline to go through Jackson County

Kari Lucin, The Daily Globe, Worthington, Minn.
·3 min read

Apr. 22—HERON LAKE — Representatives of Summit Carbon Solutions explained its proposed $4.5 billion carbon pipeline project that would run through Jackson County Thursday, during a meeting of the Heron Lake Watershed District's Board of Managers.

The ambitious 2,000-mile pipeline project would connect 32 ethanol plants across five states, collect carbon from them, transport it to North Dakota, and permanently deposit it deep underground.

One of the ethanol plants connected would be Heron Lake BioEnergy.

"If this project is successful, it's going to enhance the environmental sustainability of ethanol and the long-term viability of ethanol," said Joe Caruso, a consultant on the project, explaining the positive effects it would have on the value of corn and land.

Sequestering carbon underground prevents it from getting into the atmosphere, where it functions as a greenhouse gas.

The project could potentially allow the ethanol facilities involved to produce a net zero carbon fuel by 2030, allowing them to access markets that have low-carbon fuel standards.

According to Summit, a company based in Ames, Iowa, its new pipeline could capture and store up to 12 million tons of carbon dioxide per year, which would be roughly equivalent to removing 2.6 million cars from the roads annually.

The pipeline would go through Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota, with less than 10% of its total length in Minnesota, Caruso said. Pipeline diameter will be 4 inches on the low end and 24 inches at the most.

"We intend to break ground about a year from now," he added.

Caruso also emphasized that the proposed pipeline route is not set in stone, citing an example of farmers who suggested moving the route 500 yards to be between two fields rather than going through the center of someone's best land.

Chris Hill, director of environmental permitting for Summit Carbon Solutions, and James Hanson, a relationship manager with TurnKey Logistics, who is representing Summit Carbon Solutions, also spoke about the project and answered questions from watershed staff and managers.

One issue frequently brought up in town hall meetings, they said, was how the pipeline would affect drain tile, and Summit representatives said the plan would be to put the pipeline four feet below the drain tiles so it wouldn't affect them. They would try to put temporary drain tiles in place before construction started so that production isn't affected.

Wayne Rasche, HLWD board president, asked about some of the county tiles that are 12 feet deep, and Hanson replied that the pipeline would then go above the tile. Should soil compaction or soil quality become an issue, Summit will take on any liability for fixing it, along with any drain tile damage.

Rasche also asked why the pipeline wasn't going down the rights-of-way. Hill answered that doing so would be easier, but there's either too much in the rights-of-way already or Summit simply doesn't want to take up all the space that could be used for future development.

Hill said the project will have three revenue sources: tax credits, states with low-carbon fuel markets, and companies buying carbon-offset credits in order to fulfill commitments to become net-zero carbon producers.