Pennsylvania Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23) announced Thursday that he will be reintroducing legislation to help establish the legal and regulatory framework for carbon capture, utilization and sequestration (CCUS) in his state.
The legislation, he said, will help the state, and the nation, fight climate change and allow Pennsylvania to become a leader in CCUS while boosting innovation.
“This legislation is a proactive step to secure Pennsylvania’s future as a hub for carbon capture and sequestration,” Yaw said. “It’s a pragmatic solution to a problem that we all want to solve – reducing our carbon emissions without crippling the reliability of our existing power grid.”
One of Yaw’s bills will direct the state to apply for primary enforcement authority from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for carbon dioxide underground injection wells, the Senator’s office said. Other states working toward CCUS and its associated economic benefits have already secured primary authority, which is critical to streamlining the permitting process.
Yaw said according to the Great Plains Institute, Pennsylvania could store about 2.4 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide underground – the equivalent of the level of greenhouse gases emitted from 517 million gas-powered passenger vehicles annually.
“Pennsylvania is uniquely qualified to develop a vast CCUS network, thanks to our robust energy industry and extensive geological formations,” Yaw said. “We should act now to establish a solid regulatory framework that will attract investment and development and economic opportunity for decades to come.”