At the Moment: Carbon Capture and Sequestration Management Legislation Passes General Assembly


PA state capitol rotunda
John Walliser, VP for Legal & Government Affairs
John Walliser, VP for Legal & Government Affairs

Yesterday the General Assembly passed legislation (Senate Bill 831) that would task the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with developing regulations to manage carbon capture and storage (“CCS”) activities in the Commonwealth. During consideration in the Senate and House, the legislation was amended to include numerous improvements to protect public and conserved lands, provide enhancements to environmental standards and the ability of DEP to perform robust oversight, and additional landowner safeguards. PEC was one of several conservation and environmental organizations that worked in partnership with House and Senate stakeholders to secure these improvements.

Rapid emissions reduction is vital to dealing with climate change, and it will take multiple pathways and policies to accomplish. PEC has long advocated for an array of policies ranging from pricing carbon emissions to significant increases in our state’s clean energy portfolio standards. But we also recognize that some pathways may require options like carbon capture, including direct air capture to remove carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere. CCS is not THE answer to addressing climate change, but it can play a targeted and important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in our economy. And we only have one chance to get it right.

what is carbon capture? infographicCCS is an understandably difficult issue because of its complexity, its implications for related pipeline and other infrastructure, and the question of how it may be used – particularly in conjunction with hydrogen production or fossil fuel generation. All are valid concerns, and each must be dealt with promptly and fully. While we must ramp up renewable and other clean sources of energy as quickly as possible, we must also address existing natural gas use that will remain part of our electricity and fuels mix for the immediate future. Renewable and advanced clean technologies, even paired with storage, may not scale quickly enough to displace unabated emissions before the window closes on our opportunity to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Additionally, in the absence of readily available alternatives, CCS will be necessary for decarbonization of important chemical and industrial processes. For those reasons, we believe establishing a robust CCS management program is critical.

Currently, an operator who wants to pursue a CCS project in Pennsylvania can already apply to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a permit. While EPA has regulations for these projects, states are given the option to seek what is called “primacy” – whereby the state becomes the primary permitter and regulator of the activity. States must enact rules and regulations that equal or exceed those in place at the federal level. That presents an opportunity for better protection, and that’s what this legislation provides.

The final version of Senate Bill 831 includes provisions to factor environmental justice and cumulative impacts into regulations and permitting decisions. It charges DEP with developing regulations to protect natural resources and public health. It prevents unwanted subsurface use or surface impacts to public and conserved lands. It allows DEP to implement flexible program management fees to better sustain staffing and oversight. It requires storage operators to pay into a long-term fund to ensure resources are in hand in the event of a future response need. It requires permit applicants to address and monitor for seismicity concerns. All of these requirements are stronger than current federal standards, and some are among the toughest in the nation. All are essential to getting it right.

With CCS positioned as a compliance pathway for recently finalized federal rules to reduce emissions from the electric generation sector, and inclusion in the Governor’s PRESS proposal to expand our state’s energy portfolio standards, having ample environmental protections in place are all the more critical.

As noted above, Pennsylvania will need swift development and passage of additional legislation to address buildout of any infrastructure that accompanies carbon capture and geologic sequestration, which implicates a different set of state and federal guidance. We also must hold fast to stringent net emission reduction requirements on federal incentives for both CCS and related uses like hydrogen. And there should be clear metrics to ensure that the most cost-effective, clean, and future-forward technologies are deployed both today and tomorrow.

PEC strongly supports all of these principles. The future of CCS in Pennsylvania remains to be seen, but we cannot forgo the opportunity to adopt necessary performance standards. Now we have the basis to make that happen.


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