~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline
Representatives of Summit Carbon Solutions presented information about their company and their inspection services of a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline through Greene County at the Nov. 29 meeting of the Greene County board of supervisors.
Quinn Slaven and Rod Dillon from Summit Carbon attended through Zoom and told the board their company is headquartered in Ames and was started in 2020. “Our top priority is safety and being good stewards of the land,” Slaven said.
The company proposes a carbon capture and storage project which involves partnering with 31 ethanol plants in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska. Twelve of the ethanol plants are within Iowa.
Slaven and Dillon explained the goal of the project is to “reduce the carbon footprint of ethanol plants” by “retrofitting them to capture carbon dioxide” and then using the Midwest Carbon Express pipeline to transport it to be “injected deep underground into rock structures in North Dakota capable of storing it permanently.”
“Carbon-catching technology has been well-studied,” Slaven said. “We want to go above and beyond (standards) by using a carbon steel pipeline and putting it four feet underground. The standard is three feet.”
“We will return all land to suitable use as we found it,” he said. “We will pay to have the ethanol plants retrofitted.”
“With 12 million tons of CO2 moving a year, ethanol becomes a more attractive product,” Slaven said. “The project will hire 14 to 17 thousand workers with 360 to 400 permanent jobs.”
Dillon and Slaven estimated construction could start in 2023 and be operational in 2024.
Board chair John Muir asked where the permanent jobs would be.
Slaven and Dillon said many jobs would be in monitoring various operations and would be located at the headquarters in Ames. Other jobs would be “checking for changes in the ground” along the pipeline and “safety managers in Ames working with OSHA.”
“There will be various offices along the system that report to Ames,” Slaven said, “with emergency response along the pipeline right-of-way in case of a ‘release of product’ emergency.”
“When the CO2 gets to North Dakota, are there property owners there with concerns?” Muir asked.
Dillon and Slaven said the easement process (getting landowners permission for using their land) is underway and the University of North Dakota is involved in getting information to landowners.
Muir asked if easements are transferrable.
Slaven answered they’re regulated by the Iowa Utilities Board.
“We pay 100 percent of fair market value,” he said. “Landowners will be compensated for crop loss, 100 percent for the first year, 80 percent for the second year, and 60 percent for the third year, paid in a lump sum.”
Supervisor Tom Contner also asked if easements are transferrable. Slaven then said he would get that information.
Muir asked whether the product (CO2) could be used by ethanol plants to produce dry ice. Slaven said it could be.
Slaven spoke of a Carbon Intensity Score involved in determining how much CO2 an ethanol plant would have available to divert into other sales.
Dillon and Slaven invited further questions from the board or public and gave a telephone number for inquiries: 515-346-0441.
After the Carbon Summit representatives signed out of the board meeting, the supervisors discussed the presentation.
“We are a first step closer to choosing a company who can oversee the first level,” said Muir. “But Bolten and Menk know us.”
Supervisor Dawn Rudolph said, “We have to take one step at a time and feel comfortable.”
Auditor Jane Heun pointed out the representatives had not quoted an amount of money involved.
“There are layers of oversight as far as cost to the county,” Muir said. “Our due diligence is to reach out to companies (to get information.)
County attorney Thomas Laehn said, “The levels of oversight are up to the board. We need to be very clear about what we will be reimbursed for.”
Previously, on Oct. 18, the board of supervisors heard a presentation by ISG, a pipeline inspection company based in Des Moines. There had been negative comments about ISG from the public during open forum.
At the Nov. 29 meeting, engineer Wade Weiss reported he had a conversation with Janet Holmes, an agronomist in the Algona area. He summarized Holmes’ concerns about ISG “not following Iowa Code as well as they should” and “a series of events where the contractor (ISG) was not following rules” and “not shutting down” when needed.
Supervisor Pete Bardole said, “We want to make sure we have things spelled out in the beginning.”
Weiss spoke to the importance of knowing who has responsibility for specific aspects of the project, whether it is the pipeline or the contractor.
The careless mixing of topsoil with subsoil was discussed with Muir citing the importance of CSR insurance.
(According to an agronomy website, CSR refers to the Iowa Corn Suitability Rating system which measures potential soil productivity based on the soil profile and slope of the land. It was developed by Iowa State University in the 1970s.)
Laehn told the board the Iowa Utility Board has the power to shut down a project but the county does not have that power except on a temporary basis if something serious were to go wrong.
In other business, Laehn spoke again about a new law requiring employees who wish to be reimbursed for job-related hotel expense to stay only at hotels whose employees have completed training in identifying possible human trafficking situations.
“The Department of Public Safety will be creating a website listing lodging that meets the training standards,” Laehn said. “Employees should get a copy of the lodging’s certificate that states this or be able to show the lodging is on the accepted list.”
Laehn said he believes this requirement applies to out-of-state travel also.
“The requirement goes into effect on January 1, 2022,” he said. “This could cause some headaches in the short-term.”
Chuck Wenthold reported National Grid Renewables, the company proposing a solar panel farm south of Grand Junction, will host an open house on Dec. 15 from 10 am until 2 pm at Grand Junction city hall for local government and neighboring landowners.
Conservation director Tanner Scheuermann reported his office will be moving from the courthouse to Spring Lake. He also described plans for bicycle displays near Totem Acres and Cooper.
The board unanimously approved a motion to certify the current boundaries of the Greene County election precincts and to make no change to the Greene County Election Precinct ordinance. Heun noted the city of Jefferson precincts are determined by the city.
