Public hearings approved by Iowa Utilities Board for Summit Carbon Solutions CO2 pipeline

In Iowa, on August 12, 2021, the Iowa Utilities Board issued a letter approving the locations, dates, and times for a series of public informational meetings to inform landowners about a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline in Iowa by Summit Carbon Solutions, LLC.

Summit Carbon filed its request for the meeting dates with the IUB on August 11, 2021 in Docket No. HLP-2021-0001. The pipeline is proposed to cross 30 Iowa counties.

Summit Carbon refers to the proposed carbon capture and storage project in Iowa and four other states as the Midwest Carbon Express. The project proposes to partner with a number of ethanol plants in the five states to capture carbon dioxide emissions and transport the liquefied carbon dioxide to North Dakota where they will be stored in “deep underground geologic storage locations.”

The proposed project is classified as a hazardous liquid pipeline, which is governed by Iowa Code chapter 479B and the IUB’s administrative rules at 199 Iowa Administrative Code chapter 13.

Under Iowa Code chapter 479B, the pipeline company is required to hold informational meetings in each county in which real property or property rights would be affected, and the meetings are to be conducted at least 30 days prior to the company filing a petition for a new pipeline permit. The pipeline company will provide notice of the informational meetings to each landowner affected by the proposed pipeline and each person in possession of or residing on the property.