Carbon America submits Class VI CO2 Injection Well permit to EPA

In Colorado, Carbon America has submitted a Class VI CO2 Injection Well permit application to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Region 8 office to permanently store carbon dioxide produced by two ethanol plants in northeastern Colorado. The application was submitted on December 4th, 2023, made it through the completeness determination on January 7th, 2024, and is now in the technical review phase.

To validate the proposed underground storage site, in May 2023 Carbon America drilled a stratigraphic test well to collect well logs, core samples, and fluid samples to determine if the CO2 injection site meets and exceeds EPA standards. Carbon America chose to drill the well and analyze results in advance of submitting an application to ensure a robust and comprehensive submittal to the EPA team.

The Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) program, under the Safe Drinking Water Act, regulates the underground injection of carbon dioxide (CO2). This application for geologic storage in Washington County is the first Class VI permit to be submitted to the Region 8 office. EPA Region 8 oversees Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. North Dakota and Wyoming have obtained state primacy over Class VI permits, while the other states are still under the authority of the EPA.

If approved, the Class VI CO2 Injection Well will permanently store up to 350,000 metric tons per year of CO2 that is produced annually at the Yuma and Sterling Ethanol Plants in northeastern Colorado, which is equivalent to taking 70,000 passenger vehicles off the road. The carbon capture and storage project will help the state meet its emission reduction goals to reduce statewide emissions by 50 percent by 2030, and 90 percent by 2050, while supporting the ethanol plants and the regional agricultural industry, which sells 36 million bushels of field corn to the plants annually.