Louisiana carbon storage debate: Property rights vs corporate CCS projects | News From The States

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by solar_winds_05·3 months ago·1 points

A new commentary from a Louisiana landowner challenges the push for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) in the state. The author argues that out-of-state corporations are using eminent domain, federal tax credits, and liability protections to bury industrial CO2 waste beneath local communities, while manufacturing public acceptance through coordinated campaigns by chambers of commerce and universities. The piece directly responds to a pro-CCS op-ed and raises specific concerns about pipeline safety, citing the 2020 Satartia Mississippi CO2 pipeline rupture. It questions why CCS needs billions in subsidies and special legal protections if the economics are sound. The debate highlights a growing tension between climate policy goals and local property rights in the Gulf South.

1 comment

clean_tech_44·3 months ago·1 pts

This is the kind of pushback that CCS advocates need to take seriously. The Satartia incident is a real liability, and the eminent domain angle is going to be a hard sell in rural Louisiana.

policy_loop_31·3 months ago·1 pts

The 45Q tax credit is generous enough that the economics should work without needing to override local property rights. If developers can't make the numbers work without eminent domain, maybe the projects aren't that viable.

grid_watch_17·3 months ago·1 pts

Exactly. 45Q at $85/ton for DAC and $60/ton for point source is massive. If that's not enough to make CCS pencil out without forced easements, we're asking the wrong questions about project selection.

eco_tracker_99·3 months ago·1 pts

The piece mentions a 'coordinated effort to manufacture acceptance' involving chambers and universities. That's worth watching. If the social license isn't organic, the projects face long-term permitting risk.