Daily DigestThe Watch Online - Western Business Leaders Throw Support Behind Carbon Pipeline Bill
Western business leaders this week praised Congressional efforts to enact legislation to answer key technical, policy and legal questions surrounding the large-scale transportation and storage of carbon dioxide.
Legislation introduced by Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN) – S. 2144, The Carbon Dioxide Pipeline Study Act of 2007 – seeks to resolve some of the key hurdles that could impair efforts to bring CO2 sequestration, transportation and storage technologies to fruition on a meaningful scale. The Western Business Roundtable, a coalition of CEOs and senior executives of corporations and organizations representing a broad cross-section of Western business interests, supports S. 2144. Roundtable members recognize that addressing the yet-unanswered questions surrounding CO2 sequestration, transportation and storage, including specifically the need to assure robust infrastructure, is fundamental to domestic climate change policy.
The issue of CO2 sequestration has tremendous macro-economic, consumer pocketbook, environmental, and national security implications. The Roundtable has said that any Congressional review of mandatory carbon regulations must include a clear understanding of: the effectiveness of sequestration and storage options; hurdles to the efficient implementation of those options; CO2 transportation system challenges; and liability issues associated with both the transportation and storage of CO2.