Summit’s Risky CO2 Pipeline Puts Thousands of Nebraskans in Danger

Summit Carbon Solutions is a privately held company proposing to build an $8 billion, 2,500-mile pipeline that would carry supercritical carbon dioxide from 57 ethanol plants in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota, and North Dakota. The CO2 would then be injected underground in North Dakota. If constructed, the project would increase the United States’ carbon pipeline network by 50%. It’s worth nothing that Summit has never constructed, operated, or maintained a pipeline of any kind before.

CO2 pipelines are risky and proven to fail. In the event of a carbon pipeline rupture, a plume of CO2 can emerge, odorless and colorless. Carbon dioxide is a toxicant and  asphyxiant capable of suffocating all living beings. The same displacement of oxygen that causes asphyxiation also keeps combustion engines from running, constraining both escape and emergency response options.

Little research has been done on the distance a lethal plume of CO2 can spread. This is largely due to the limited existence of carbon pipelines, as well as the many variables that affect the dispersion, such as weather, land formations, and the specifications of the pipeline. However, based on the information that is available, we know that dangerous levels of CO2 have the ability to spread at least a mile following a pipeline rupture.  

In order to provide Nebraska communities with critical safety information, a GIS expert created maps detailing the population of the potential risk zone along the Summit pipeline route. The distances used in the maps are based off of figures from plume modeling released by Navigator CO2 Ventures, which was not worst case scenario modeling meaning these figures may be somewhat conservative. You can view the maps below.

Summit’s carbon pipeline poses a lethal threat to the nearly 5,000 Nebraskans that live within the potential risk zone.

We must demand our county and community officials use their power to protect our lives, our livelihoods, and our communities from Summit’s hazardous carbon pipeline.