A natural gas flare on an oil well pad burns as the sun sets outside Watford City, North Dakota January 21, 2016 REUTERS Andrew Cullen File Photo
Jan 26 Reuters - Top US oil-producing states are trying to wrest oversight of carbon capture wells from federal regulators in order to speed up the oil industry's preferred approach to combating climate warming amid calls for limits on fossil fuel production.
Companies are proposing carbon capture and storage of CCS hubs to sequester greenhouse gas emissions from refineries, chemical and natural gas plants, a move that could help slow global warming.
The rules governing the carbon-injection wells for most states require federal approval with the first permits taking around six years to get a green light.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency EPA has taken over permit reviews and enforcement authority for carbon dioxide CO 2 and other greenhouse gas storages sites, and Texas and Louisiana wants to take over permit reviews and enforcement authority.
The first permit was issued last year by North Dakota, the third-largest oil producing state in 2018 after an eight-month review. An official said New Mexico, the second largest oil producer after Texas, had begun initial discussions with the EPA for regulating carbon sequestration wells.
The regulations of the states must be as stringent as the EPA's. Environmentalists worry that putting state regulators in charge will lead to lax monitoring once regulatory agencies in oil-friendly states take charge.
The EPA launched a probe last year of Texas' air quality regulators for not properly monitoring a big air pollution. Environmental groups have won multi-million dollar settlements in federal courts for pollution unpenalized by Texas. Those states that are angling for oversight are big energy firms proposing underground CO 2 storage projects. Exxon Mobil Corp XOM.N is evaluating a massive carbon reservoir off the coast in Texas, along with more than dozen other energy firms.
Exxon spokesman Todd Spitler said that the technology will require government support and stable policies, including a streamlined permitting process for CCS facilities.
Sempra Energy SRE.N has an application before the EPA for a Louisiana facility tied to a natural gas plant. A spokesman said the company supports Louisiana's request for primacy and shared its plans with the state's regulator.
Marcella Burke, a partner with King Spalding and former deputy general counsel at the EPA, said that the primacy over regulating carbon injection wells can speed up the permitting process through greater efficiency and less red tape.
It is a cooperative federalism. Burke said if we delegate the primary regulatory and enforcement authority to the state, we're saying it can handle things in its backyard, as long as the state meets federal standards.
Some environmentalists worry that delegating enforcement authority to the states for these carbon sequestration wells could lead to inconsistent rules, lax monitoring and potential hazards, such as carbon returning to the atmosphere.
Patrick Drupp, a clean air expert at the Sierra Club, said that we need a science-based federal backstop of strong regulations to make sure that carbon is sequestered and sequestered permanently, rather than a patchwork of state regulations.
He said that the environmental group opposes carbon sequestration in cases where it promotes burning fossil fuels instead of a faster move to renewable energy.
According to Jena Lococo, program manager for ClearPath, who previously worked for Exxon, state control will be a game-changer for speeding up carbon sequestration projects. She said that federal processes are an obstacle to getting projects off the ground.
Lococo said that states that have primacy or are actively working towards primacy will attract more projects within their borders, which will help local economies and industries.
North Dakota issued its second carbon-sequestration permit around seven months after utility Minnkota Power Cooperative applied. Its first permit took eight months to get approval. The only EPA permits for wells currently in operation - both tied to ethanol maker Archer Daniels Midland ADM.N - took nearly six years, according to ClearPath.
This is a multi-year process, according to Scott Goldberg, the new Carbon Solutions group at EnLink Midstream ENLC.N, which aims to convert some of its natural gas pipelines in Louisiana to carry carbon dioxide from certain plants to underground storage sites.
North Dakota and Wyoming, which have carbon-well permitting authority, are ahead of the game, he said.