A carbon pipeline project aimed at reducing heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions from the Midwest ethanol industry is irritating some within that very industry.
Summit Carbon Solutions aims to transport carbon dioxide from ethanol plants to an underground storage site in North Dakota. Its CEO, Lee Blank, recently emphasized the importance of the pipeline for the ethanol industry in an interview with South Dakota Searchlight.
Electric vehicles are continuing to grow, he said. They are, and maybe not here, but in cities. Our gas consumption is going down. So how do we open up other markets so ethanol consumption goes up?
Iowa-based Summit wants to collect carbon dioxide emissions from 32 ethanol plants, including some in South Dakota. Doing so would make the project eligible forfederal tax creditsthat incentivize greenhouse gas sequestration and could create access to new markets. Those include states demanding cleaner ethanol, and new ventures like ethanol-based jet fuel.
Company spokesperson Sabrina Zenor said not having the pipeline would break the Midwest ethanol industry. Some opponents are anti-ethanol, she said.
The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission denied Summit a building permit earlier this year, citing violations of county setback ordinances. Summit plans to resubmit an application.
Meanwhile, some corn farmers who have long supported the ethanol industry were alarmed by Summits use of eminent domain to acquire private land for the pipeline, against the will of about 160 South Dakota landowners. That happenedbefore the pipeline projects permit hearing with state regulators.
South Dakota Farmers Union President Doug Sombke said members feel betrayed. They supported the growth of the ethanol industry, only to face what they perceived as an infringement on their property rights.
You, the farmers, made this industry, Sombke said during a panel discussion on property rights at the organizations 108th annual convention in Huron in November.
Sombke is furious over Summits allegation that pipeline opponents are anti-ethanol.
There isnobody in this state thats worked harderfor ethanol than me or this organization, he said. You should all be damn proud of that.
There are other ways to ensure ethanol has a steady future, Sombke said, like blending more of it into the nations fuel supply. Plus, he said using sustainable agricultural practicesthat sequester more carbonon land thats used to grow corn for ethanol would accomplish the same goal.
Ed Fischbach farms corn in Spink County and sells it to the ethanol industry. Today he leads South Dakotans First, a coalition of landowners and others opposed to the pipeline.
Never in my wildest dreams, with all weve done for ethanol and these companies, did I think they were going to come back and ask me to give up my land, and you to give up your land so that they could improve their bottom line, Fischbach said at the Farmers Union Convention.
He said the coalition of opponents will support legislation during the upcoming legislative session that would ban the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines. Similar legislationfailed last winter.
State ag politicos call it vital
Pipeline proponents in the states agriculture industry recentlyformed a coalitionof their own.
The group wants to raise public awareness about the potential negative impacts on the state and its rural communities if we allow a small minority of objectors to continue blocking proposals like the carbon pipeline project, according to a press release from the group, called Protect South Dakotas Future.
Summit last reported having access agreements with enough landowners to give the company access to about 70% of the land required to complete the project.
Thecoalitions site saysa $1.2 billion investment, $99 million in local tax revenue during construction, and $53 million in annual expenditures are on the line.
The coalitions board is made up ofsix influential ag development voices.
Whether you agree or disagree with carbon sequestration, it is here, it is not going away, and will determine market access moving forward indefinitely, Walt Bones, former South Dakota Secretary of Agriculture and Noems 2022 Ag Ambassador said in the press release.
Lake Preston area farmer,national soybean lobbyist, and Noems 2019 Ag Ambassador Paul Casper called the project vital to the industrys future.
Weve been working to create value-added ag opportunities in the state for more than 25 years and we know the carbon pipeline is more than just an infrastructure project; its a lifeline for our states economic and agricultural future, Casper said in the release.
Protect South Dakotas Future wasnt the only group of politically connected proponents to recently join the conversation.
South Dakota Ag Alliance, co-founded by Rob Skjonsberg and Jason Glodt, prominent political figures in the state, will advocate for policies to complete the pipeline while trying to ensure opponent landowners do not feel cheated.
DC lobbyists: ‘Ethanol going nowhere’
Meanwhile, some D.C. ethanol lobbyists are irritated by Summits claim that the industry faces a bleak future without its carbon-capture project.
The ethanol industry isnt going anywhere, said David Hallberg,an ethanol lobbyistand founder of the Renewable Fuels Association. They should stop saying that.
Fellowethanol lobbyistDoug Durante said the industry is aware of how electric vehicles and greater fuel efficiency will eat into demand for ethanol, but it has another pathway for keeping demand up.
If the pipeline can add some value, thats great, but weve also got an opportunity right now, Durante said. And its higher blends.
Hallberg agreed.
Like Doug Sombke, Durante and Hallberg said more ethanol in the nations fuel supply would maintain its demand, even if liquid fuel consumption was halved.
We have an immediate market opportunity that requires no federal subsidies, Hallberg said.
All three leaders want to see E30 (30% ethanol, 70% gasoline) at as many gas pumps as there are currently pumping E15 (15% ethanol, 85% gasoline).
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