The carbon pipeline proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions was discussed at the Oct. 6 county board of supervisors meeting, as it has been at the majority of meeting in recent months.
County attorney Thomas Laehn alerted the board during the “Reports” portion of the agenda that Summit on Sept. 15 filed a request to amend the permit for Phase 1 of the project. Phase 1 does not have direct bearing on Greene County. The Iowa Utilities Commission has granted a permit for Phase 1 of the project, conditional on Summit obtaining a permit from South Dakota. South Dakota denied the permit. Summit has now asked the IUC to amend the permit, taking out the condition regarding South Dakota.
Phase 2 would go through Greene County from the Louis Dreyfus ethanol plant at Grand Junction southwest to Guthrie County. The IUC has not acted on a permit for Phase 2 as Phase 1 is in litigation in Polk County. According to Laehn, Summit on Sept. 29 filed a petition with the IUC to consolidate the two phases in the permitting process.
Laehn, during the last legislative session, filed Greene County as an intervenor in Phase 2. He urged the supervisors to file a resistance in court against merging the two phases to avoid being drawn into the current litigation.
“I think it’s just not fair,” Laehn said. “When Phase 2 started a lot of landowners requested at that time that the two phases merge, and Summit Carbon was very adamant they were opposed to the… consolidation of the two phase… In my mind, the motion to consolidate is a ruse, a pretext for getting it out of district court and back to the IUC.”
The county has until Oct. 13 to file a resistance to consolidating the two phases.
“We’ve tried to handle this fairly with Summit Carbon and with our residents who have concerns,” board chair John Muir said. “Being drawn into something we didn’t chose to be part of at the start… we don’t want that.”
JD Myers and Mike Higgins of Summit Carbon Solutions were on the agenda to speak after a closed session scheduled for 9:15, but instead chose to abbreviate their remarks before the closed session.
Myers did not speak to Laehn’s concerns. He said Summit Carbon Solutions has a new CEO, Joe Griffin, and other new personnel.
He said Griffin invites open dialog. “If you have any questions at all, let us know,” he said.
Myers said he’s a Humboldt County farmer and a desire to open new markets for corn is the reason he’s working for Summit. “You guys remember what the farm revenues looked like before the ethanol market took off in 2005 and the gains we’ve seen and the benefits we’ve seen from it. We want to take ethanol to the next level and keep ethanol surviving and here to stay,” he said.
He said Summit Carbon Solutions is making changes. Landowners can now get payments for easements up front of over time, at or above fair market value. Landowners can also choose to join investors and receive a payment option similar to that received by persons who granted easements for wind turbines. There will also be an annual stakeholder payment paid on per foot per landowner.
Landowners will receive advance notice of surveys, wither a 72-hour notice or the statutory requirement. They’ll also receive a $500 one-time payment for all applicable project surveys. Additionally, Summit agrees that agriculture and pipeline industry best practices will be followed on construction and restoration.
Summit will provide $50,000 per county plus $3,700 per mile of pipeline for emergency responder preparedness; fund the purchase of carbon dioxide specific response equipment and training; implement a real-time notification system; and provide ongoing coordination and annual training with first responders.
Finally, Summit Carbon Solutions will sweeten the pot with annual county grants based on pipeline footage built in the county. The amount increases as milestones of voluntary easement agreements are reached. Funds can by used to support community projects or priorities.
Summit also claims it would provide approximately $70 million in annual property taxes across the entire project. Specific to Greene County, Summit anticipates paying an estimated $2,048,000 in property taxes in Greene County. Of that, $826,000 would go to Greene County Schools; $32,000 would go to Paton-Churdan; $90,000 would go to Iowa Central Community College; $30,000 would go to various townships and cities; and $968,000 would go to the county’s general fund to be used at the supervisors’ discretion.
Summit Carbon Solutions has scheduled nine informational open house events the second week of November. Those closest to Greene County are Nov. 10 from 5 to 7 pm at Boulders Conference Center in Denison, and Nov. 13 from 11 am to 1 pm at the Webster County Fairgrounds in Fort Dodge. When Myers finished his presentation, Muir assured him, “Our eyes are wide open. We see both sides.”
