The Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) has announced a public hearing for a proposed underground carbon dioxide pipeline, which also includes a portion of Greene County.

The IUB has scheduled the hearing for Summit Carbon Solutions as they are seeking a permit to build an underground pipeline 687 miles across Iowa to transport hazardous liquid carbon dioxide in 29 Iowa counties to an underground storage facility in North Dakota. The public hearing begins at 10am on Tuesday, August 22nd at the Cardiff Events Center in Fort Dodge. 

According to the IUB, Summit Carbon Solutions has requested the right to use eminent domain for about 973 parcels on the pipeline route. IUB Director of Communications Don Tormey tells Raccoon Valley Radio Summit can also withdraw its request for eminent domain over a parcel as negotiations continue with those impacted landowners up to and after the public hearing. He says both landowners that are impacted by eminent domain and the landowners who are on the route and have agreements for voluntary easements with Summit will be allowed to speak at the public hearing, along with other individuals and groups that filed beforehand. 

Tormey notes that eminent domain landowners can show up to speak at the hearing and if the IUB doesn’t hear them on August 22nd, those landowners can make arrangements to do so and be allowed to testify.

Tormey says after the hearing, the IUB will review the information in the docket and base its final decision on Iowa law and the evidentiary record. The IUB can either grant the permit, grant the permit with modifications or deny it. The public hearing was originally scheduled to begin this October but in a document that was filed with the IUB on June 16th stated that the hearing was moved up to August 22nd for eminent domain landowners to testify and avoid peak harvest months. Tormey points out there are five Greene County landowners that are represented by attorney Brian Jorde. Greene County Environmental and Zoning Administrator Chuck Wenthold says three landowners have not yet reached an agreement for easements with Summit, and those include Dan Tronchetti, Mark Gunion and Rowles Farms, Incorporated. 

The hearing will also be livestreamed for anyone who is unable to attend in person. The link can be found below. More information about the project can also be found below.

Additionally, the North Dakota Public Service Commission earlier this month denied Summit’s siting permit for the same pipeline project and sources say Summit plans to re-apply for the permit. 

https://iub.iowa.gov/summit (livestream link)

https://efs.iowa.gov/efs/ShowDocketSummary.do?docketNumber=HLP-2021-0001