A network of pipelines, seen on Aug. 23, 2018, snakes through a portion of the Greater Prudhoe Bay Unit on Alaska’s North Slope. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has begun planning for the state’s new carbon sequestration program.
The program, approved by state lawmakers and Gov. Mike Dunleavy this year, will eventually see the state license pipelines and injection wells that allow companies to store carbon dioxide deep underground.
Storage programs, already in use by other states, are seen as a way to avert the environmental consequences of fossil fuel use . They’ve exploded in popularity since Congress and President Joe Biden approved significant tax incentives.
In a public notice published Tuesday, the AOGCC said it is taking public comments on possible regulations for the state program.
As part of the program, the state will assume regulatory authority over carbon injection wells, taking it from the Environmental Protection Agency.