After hearing Gov. Dave Freudenthal tell them Wyoming needs to be out front in regulating new ways of permanently storing greenhouse gas underground, a legislative committee Wednesday endorsed two proposed measures dealing with carbon capture and sequestration in the state. The Legislature's Joint Judiciary Interim Committee endorsed proposal s that would give the s tat e Depar tment of Envi ronmental Quality regulatory oversight of CO2 storage in the state and recognize that surface owners control the underground voids where the gas would be stored. Both proposals will be considered by the Legislature when it meets next month. Freudenthal told a panel of lawmakers that carbon capture and seques t rat ion wi l l be vi tal t o Wyoming's economy, which is heavily dependent on producing coal for power generation facilities in the state and elsewhere. Burning coal produces carbon dioxide, which scientists say contributes to global warming. Growing concern over global warming has led to the idea of capturing carbon dioxide and injecting it into vast, deep geological formations where it can't be released into the atmosphere. The federal government will be involved in developing policy and regulation of carbon capture and sequestration, so it is important that Wyoming have some influence over what happens, Freudenthal said. "The best way to do that is to have something in place first, instead of having the federal government come and say 'Well, you're not doing anything now, do exactly what we tell you,'" he told reporters after addressing the panel. "I think we have a better chance of defining how this issue is treated in a way that makes sense for Wyoming if we act now." Freudenthal said it was important that lawmakers not become bogged down in details and delay acting on the proposals. "We're going to be at this a long time," he said. "I think this nation's going to be at this issue for a long time. Start with some small steps and then you move forward." Freudenthal and s tate DEQ Director John Corra said DEQ is equipped to handle regulation of sequestration facilities. But they said it should be clear that the carbon proposals not include the practice of pumping CO2 underground while drilling for oil and gas. Oil and gas companies use the CO2 to recover oil and gas that cannot be brought to the surface under conventional drilling practices. Some CO2 is trapped underground in the process. Regarding ownership of the underground voids where the gas would be stored, Freudenthal said there is going to be a "major transfer of wealth in this country" as a result of carbon capture and sequestration. "I would rather that wealth go to our citizens than to the federal government," he said. Laurie Goodman, president of the Landowners Association of Wyoming, suggested that the proposals needed clarification to better protect landowners from possible liability should something go wrong with the underground storage. "Somewhere the surface landowner needs to be held harmless," Goodman said.
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