A legal challenge has been filed by a group of North Dakota landowners against the state’s authorization of an underground carbon storage facility for Summit Carbon Solutions. This company is spearheading the development of the world’s largest carbon capture pipeline project.
The appeal, submitted to Burleigh County District Court on Thursday by the landowners represented by attorney Derrick Braaten, alleges that the North Dakota Industrial Commission withheld crucial information and violated state law when it approved the storage permit plan on December 12th.
These permanent underground carbon storage sites in western North Dakota are integral to Summit‘s ambitious plan for a five-state pipeline network designed to capture CO2 emissions from ethanol plants.
The approval of these storage wells represents one of Governor Doug Burgum’s final decisions as chair of the Industrial Commission, which also comprises Attorney General Drew Wrigley and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring.
The unanimous vote by the commission effectively compels landowners who have not entered into agreements with Summit to allow carbon storage on their property. The landowners contend that the Industrial Commission, which encompasses the state Department of Mineral Resources, unlawfully denied them access to information under North Dakota’s open records laws.
Braaten and his clients sought computer-generated models that predict the movement of carbon dioxide when injected underground for permanent storage.
Relevant: North Dakota Approves Summit Carbon Pipeline Project
The appeal states that former Department of Mineral Resources Director Lynn Helms refused to provide these models before, during, and after public hearings on the matter in June, shortly before his retirement.
The order issued by the Industrial Commission claimed that any unfulfilled open records requests were due to the Braaten Law Firm’s failure to inform the agency about the missing records.
“That’s a lie,” Braaten stated to the North Dakota Monitor.
The appeal reveals that Braaten’s firm ultimately obtained the records in November. Braaten argues that the computer models lack accuracy, yet landowners were denied the opportunity to challenge their validity. He also asserts that multiple requests for a rehearing were disregarded.
Read more: Carbon Storage Laws Challenged In North Dakota Supreme Court
