EPA wants to give Texas the authority to supervise CO2 injection permits

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed Monday to approve Texas' application for its own permitting of projects to inject underground carbon dioxide, a step long sought after by the state's regulators as well as oil and gas firms with projects in development.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin stated that Texas was best positioned to protect drinking water from contamination, while allowing lucrative CO2 injection, also known by the name carbon capture and storage projects (CCS), to mitigate climate changes, to proceed.

Carbon injection is a method of permanently storing CO2 emissions deep underground from industrial and power plants. This allows some companies to offset their emissions.

Zeldin, in a press release, said that "EPA has taken a major step in supporting cooperative federalism in Texas by proposing approval of Class VI [CO2 Injection] wells within the state."

This approval is being planned amid concerns from some landowners, environmental groups and others that pumping CO2 underground could damage their groundwater. It may also exacerbate the earthquakes and oil-well blowouts occurring in the Permian basin as Texas struggles with wastewater disposal.

The federal tax credits that were used to encourage carbon sequestration under the Inflation Reduction Act of the Biden administration have largely been preserved, even though House Republicans voted against other subsidies like those for electric vehicles and clean energy.

The Trump administration and Republicans, as well as some oil companies like Occidental have continued to support CCS technology even though President Donald Trump is trying to rollback most regulations aimed at reducing emissions of CO2 and greenhouse gases.

Carbon sequestration is a business opportunity for oil companies with expertise in deep-underground drilling. Those companies that have industrial projects with voluntary emission targets might want to bury CO2 emissions in order to reduce their carbon footprint.

John Cornyn, Texas Republican Senator, said that Texas is a leader when it comes to energy production. This includes pioneering practices in carbon capture and storage. (Reporting and editing by Mark Porter, Margueritachoy and Valerie Volcovici)

(source: Reuters)