No to moratorium

Portland Plan Commission recommended not to put a moratorium in place on carbon sequestration projects during its meeting Thursday.

The issue now moves to Portland City Council for a final decision.

Local officials have been discussing carbon sequestration — the process of storing carbon dioxide, which can be captured from industrial projects, power plants and other facilities — for several months now. POET Biorefining of rural Portland is working toward a carbon sequestration project. Plans are to submit an application to the Environmental Protection Agency in the next few weeks, after which there is about a two-year review period that will include community engagement and public review.

Portland Plan Commission previously made no recommendation on a moratorium, with Portland City Council then deciding in July to send the issue back to the plan commission for further study. (Jay County Commissioners previously voted not to place a moratorium on carbon sequestration projects.)

The plan commission heard a presentation from Purdue University professor of geophysics and physics Douglas Schmitt about carbon sequestration.

He explained the basics of the process, noting that Jay County has the Mount Simon Sandstone that is deep and highly porous with shale acting as “seal rock” above it. Those conditions, he said, are ideal for carbon sequestration.

Schmitt explained that the process is not new — “This has actually been around a long time,” he said — and that about 10% of U.S. oil production involves enhanced carbon dioxide injection.

He noted the importance of evaluation of the injection site ahead of the project and said monitoring will be essential once it is underway.

Schmitt mentioned potential leaks as risks while noting that there have been some cases of leaks from surface infrastructure but underground leaks have not seemed to be a problem. As benefits of such a project, he pointed to removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Plan commission member Randy Geesman, who served two terms as Portland’s mayor, asked about any potential impacts from blasting at the nearby US Aggregates stone quarry, risks of leaking and the quality of the site for such a project. Schmitt said he would not be concerned about blasting because of the depth of the injection, said that risk of leaks is minimal and agreed that the rock is ideal for carbon sequestration.

Kent McClung, who sits on the plan commission and serves as city council president, asked about Schmitt’s confidence in the technology. He responded that it is safe if proper study is done ahead of time and monitoring is in place, noting that there is not a lot of seismic activity in the area.

Portland Mayor Jeff Westlake asked about an Illinois ban on carbon sequestration projects in the area of the Mahomet Aquifer. Schmitt said he was unfamiliar with the ban but said he would look into it. (The Illinois legislature passed a bill in August to ban carbon sequestration in the area of the aquifer, which is the primary source of drinking water in central Illinois. The ban goes into effect on Jan. 1.)

Geesaman pushed for a recommendation against a moratorium, saying he had not heard anything that caused him to think the POET project was unsafe.

Plan commission member Ashley Hilfiker, who also sits on city council, said her concern is not about a lack of trust in POET but rather in making sure checks and balances are in place for all projects.

Plan commission members also talked about timing and whether or not regulations could be put in place retroactively. (They can’t.)

John Hemmelgarn and Pati McLaughlin of Jay/Portland Building and Planning explained that they are working on an ordinance to regulate carbon sequestration projects, as well as rules for battery storage facilities and potential updates to ordinances regarding wind and solar farms. Hemmelgarn said the goal is to have something to present to the city and county plan commissions by the end of the year. 

He said such an ordinances would cover items such as setbacks from residences, permitting fees and monitoring requirements. (There are already EPA and state guidelines in place regarding carbon sequestration.) City attorney Wes Schemenaur suggested a provision to require that companies pursuing such projects provide notice to surrounding landowners, in large part to reduce the workload on the building and planning department.

Kyle Cook of the plan commission asked Hemmelgarn and McLaughlin for their input on a moratorium.

“Ultimately, we’re gonna work on this regardless,” Hemmelgarn said. “But it’s up to you guys to decide what goes in it.”

He asked plan commission members to start thinking now about what should be in an ordinance regulating carbon sequestration projects.

The plan commission then voted 7-1 against recommending a moratorium, with Ron Laux, Bart Darby, Steve McIntosh, Jerry Alexander, Matt Goldsworthy, Cook, McClung and Geesaman. Hilfiker cast the dissenting vote and Chad Aker was absent from the meeting.

The decision on whether or not to put a moratorium in place now moves to Portland City Council, which has 45 days to take action.