Iowa Utilities Board approves hazardous liquid pipeline through 29 Iowa counties

DES MOINES – A controversial pipeline can be constructed through Iowa to serve the ethanol makers, after some requirements are met, carrying hazardous liquids, after the Iowa Utilities Board approved an application from Summit Carbon Solutions.

On June 25, 2024, the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) issued its final decision regarding Summit Carbon Solutions, LLC’s, application for a permit to construct, operate, and maintain a hazardous liquid pipeline through 29 counties in Iowa. The IUB approved the application with modifications and will require Summit Carbon to submit additional filings for review before a permit is issued.

Summit Carbon filed its petition on January 28, 2022, for the proposed 688-mile pipeline to transport liquefied carbon dioxide through Iowa and into North Dakota, where it would be permanently sequestered underground.

The decision follows a 34-month process in which the IUB:

• conducted 33 public informational meetings
• received approximately 50,000 pages of prefiled testimony and exhibits from hundreds of witnesses and landowners
• held a public hearing over 25 days
• accepted more than 150 intervenors into the docket
• heard testimony at hearing from more than 200 witnesses and landowners
• reviewed nearly 7,500 pages of hearing transcript, and
• reviewed almost 4,200 written comments, including 600 filed after the deadline set by Iowa law.

In its decision, the IUB unanimously found Summit Carbon met the requirements of Iowa Code chapter 479B and that the pipeline “will provide a service that is in the public convenience and necessity.” The IUB’s order approves the proposed overall pipeline route and grants the right of eminent domain over specific parcels listed in the order after the permit is issued.

In reaching its decision, the IUB applied a statutory balancing test, which found the public benefits of the project outweigh the private and public costs with the terms and conditions imposed by the IUB.

Included with the order are concurrences in part and dissents in part regarding specific conditions and the route. The concurrences and dissents do not impact the findings and conclusions of the order as all three Board members find the proposed service provided by Summit Carbon is in the public convenience and necessity and they vest Summit Carbon with the right of eminent domain.

Prior to the IUB issuing a permit and Summit Carbon beginning construction, Summit Carbon will be required to obtain and file proof of a general liability insurance policy of no less than $100 million to cover any damages related to the construction, operation, and maintenance of its Iowa pipeline. Summit Carbon will be required to provide proof of such insurance to the IUB annually.

Summit Carbon is also not allowed to begin construction in Iowa until it has obtained approval from North Dakota for the route and sequestration site and approval from South Dakota for the route. The company also cannot start construction of trunk or lateral lines to ethanol plants in Minnesota and Nebraska until approvals are granted in those states.

Due to the potential for the IUB’s involvement in rehearing and/or judicial review, the IUB will not have additional comment in relation to the order.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

On January 28, 2022, Summit Carbon Solutions, LLC (Summit Carbon), filed its petition, as revised, to construct, operate, and maintain approximately 688.01 miles of hazardous liquid pipeline through 29 Iowa counties. The hearing regarding Summit Carbon’s petition occurred in Fort Dodge, Iowa, beginning on August 22 and concluding on November 8, 2023. During the hearing, the Board admitted tens of thousands of pages of testimony and exhibits, heard testimony from more than 200 witnesses, and admitted approximately 4,180 comments, objections, and letters of support filed in the docket, including approximately 600 comments filed after the deadline set by Iowa law.

After weighing numerous factors for and against Summit Carbon’s petition, the Board found that the service to be provided by Summit Carbon will promote the public convenience and necessity. The Board found Summit Carbon could be vested with the right of eminent domain and, based upon this finding, the Board examined each of the 859 outstanding parcels subject to a request for eminent domain to determine, based
upon the record, whether to approve, deny, or modify each request.

Additionally, as part of the order, Summit Carbon will be required to submit numerous revised exhibits as compliance filings for the Board’s review, prior to the Board issuing the permit or Summit Carbon commencing construction. Several conditions will be attached to the permit as well, including but not limited to requiring Summit Carbon to obtain and maintain at least a $100 million insurance policy, comply with certain construction methods, and ensure landowners and tenants are compensated for damages that may result from the construction of Summit Carbon’s hazardous liquid pipeline.

Included with the order, Board Chair Helland issued a concurrence in part and dissent in part in which he agreed with all of the findings and conclusions except for a condition that prohibits Summit Carbon from beginning construction until it has obtained agency-level approval for a route and sequestration site in North Dakota and a route in South Dakota. Board Chair Helland stated he would not have placed this condition on the permit as it gives away the Board’s authority to another jurisdiction, contrary to the duties assigned to the Board by the Iowa Legislature.

Board Member Byrnes issued a concurrence in part and dissent in part in which he agreed with all of the findings and conclusions except for the approval of the lateral between the Quad County Corn Processors, Inc., facility in Ida County, Iowa, and the Green Plains Shenandoah facility in Fremont County, Iowa. Board Member Byrnes stated he does not find that portion of the route to be just and proper after weighing the evidence.

The concurrences in part and dissents in part do not impact the findings and conclusions of the order as all three Board members find the proposed service provided by Summit Carbon is in the public convenience and necessity and vest Summit Carbon with the right of eminent domain.

(TOP PHOTO, IMAGES AND MAPS VIA summitcarbonsolutions.com. Top photo shows pipeline installation in farmland.)

BOARD MEMBERS: