By Joyce Blumenshine

The Canadian Wolf company and Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) are proceeding with plans for a 280 mile long high-pressure, liquified, carbon dioxide pipeline from Iowa, crossing the Mississippi River north of Moline into Illinois. Impacted counties include Rock Island, Henry, a corner of Knox, Stark, Peoria, Tazewell, and others to end at ADM carbon sequestration locations in Macon County or possibly other locations. The company mapping shows a pipeline branch up through the south side of Peoria to the BioUrja ethanol plant at the edge of the Peoria downtown. ADM sold the plant to BioUrja in October, 2021. An explosion and extended fire at the plant in early May, 2022, resulted in over two million dollars of damages to the facility.

The Wolf-ADM CO2 line might extend into Pekin, although the available mapping is not clear. CO2 pipelines do not have slow leaks but will rupture if there is a problem due to the high pressure of the contents. CO2 pipeline pressures can range up to 2,200 psi or higher, compared to natural gas pipelines with pressures from 200 to 1500 psi. Wolf-ADM is now referring to the project at the “Mt. Simon Hub CCS Pipeline”. 

Earlier in 2022, the U.S. Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) began a review of CO2 pipeline regulations due to public health and safety issues from a line rupture outside of Sataria, MS. The new regulations are expected in 2024 and environmental groups are calling for a moratorium on new CO2 pipeline construction until the revised federal regulations are in place. An explosion of a CO2 line in Peoria, similar to the Satartia, MS, incident, could mean loss of many lives. CO2 is an asphyxiant and will displace oxygen. Gasoline or diesel vehicles will not run if CO2 levels are high and it can take only several minutes for high levels of CO2 to cause confusion, coma, or death. For more information see the Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines website.