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• Introduced by Sen. Wayne Kuipers (R) on August 27, 2009, to establish regulations and impose fees of $1 per ton on operators of underground carbon dioxide sequestration facilities, and provide immunity from civil or criminal prosecution after 10 years if the operator has followed all the rules and the facility maintains its integrity. Ownership of the underground reservoir (and subsequent liability) would then transfer to the state. The bill would also empower local governments to use eminent domain to take privately owned land to create such a facility. Sequestration is the injection of CO2 into wells deep in the ground, and is a technique being investigated to use mainly in conjunction with coal burning power plants to mitigate the possibility of global warming caused by the release of CO2 into the atmosphere.
  • Referred to the Senate Natural Resources & Environmental Affairs Committee on August 27, 2009.
    • Reported in the Senate on September 17, 2009, with the recommendation that the bill be referred to the Committee on Energy Policy and Public Utilities.
    • Referred to the Senate Energy Policy & Public Utilities Committee on September 17, 2009.