The Mahomet Aquifer supplies fresh, clean water to nearly one million people throughout Central Illinois.
Yet today, the sole source of drinking water for 14 counties faces a direct threat from an onslaught of carbon capture and sequestration project proposals – fueled by tax breaks for big polluters created by the Inflation Reduction Act.
As local communities prepare to push back, we’re breaking down what CCS is, the potential risks these projects carry, and the campaign to protect our water from these threats.
What Is CCS and Why Is It Risky?
Carbon capture and sequestration is a process by which CO2, primarily from industrial sources like ethanol plants, is captured, compressed, and injected deep underground for long-term storage. Advocates tout CCS as a tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, claiming it will help mitigate climate change and allow industries like fossil fuel power and ethanol to continue business as usual.
However, the technology is still largely unproven, and could even end up increasing emissions in some cases. Significant questions remain about its safety, especially when it comes to protecting vital natural resources like the Mahomet Aquifer.
One key risk of carbon sequestration, the final step in the CCS process, is the potential for leakage. Despite assurances from industry, injecting massive amounts of compressed CO2 underground creates the risk of fluid seepage or migration that could contaminate groundwater. This is particularly dangerous for aquifers like the Mahomet.
The technology is far from perfect, and once CO2 escapes from its storage site, the impacts can be severe and long-lasting. Leaked CO2 would form carbonic acid, which could mobilize heavy metals already present in the aquifer and make it unsafe to drink.
We saw this with the People’s Gas leak in 2016, when methane stored near rural Mahomet leaked, contaminating the water ﹘ even now, people in that area are still relying on bottled water.
Two recent leaks at Archer Daniels Midland’s ethanol plant facility near Decatur serve as a chilling reminder of this reality. Since 2008, ADM has received more than $281 million in taxpayer dollars for CCS projects in Decatur, touted as an international demonstration site for the efficacy of carbon sequestration. For the past few years, the company has been injecting CO2 into the ground as part of its industrial-scale CCS project. Twice this year, a leak has been reported at monitoring wells at the facility, just five miles outside of the Mahomet Aquifer. ADM knew for months without telling the public.
While ADM has paused injections and begun additional tests, industry and the US EPA are advancing three additional projects currently proposed to inject carbon dioxide through the Mahomet Aquifer and store it underneath.
Why Store Pollution Under the Aquifer?
The Mahomet Aquifer is located above a portion of the Mt. Simon Sandstone geologic formation. The Mt. Simon is a saline aquifer located about a mile underground, and researchers have identified it as a relatively cost-effective location to inject and store CO2 underground. While Mt. Simon covers a region far larger than the Mahomet Aquifer, the area that is most economical for storage happens to overlap the Mahomet. There are currently three proposed projects that would store carbon in the Mt. Simon by drilling through the Mahomet.
Local Governments Step Up In Fight Against Carbon Sequestration
The incident at ADM’s facility has sparked renewed urgency among residents and local governments to ban carbon sequestration under the Mahomet Aquifer. They realize that no amount of promised economic or environmental benefits can outweigh the potential risks of contaminating an aquifer that provides water to so many of us across the state.
In response to these concerns, local leaders in Champaign County are taking bold action.
On October 10, the Champaign County Board’s Environment and Land Use Committee will consider a 12 month moratorium on carbon sequestration under the Mahomet Aquifer. The meeting will take place at the Brookens Center at 1776 E. Washington Street in Urbana at 6:30 p.m. We want to fill the room. Will you join us?
This moratorium would be a significant victory for community members pushing for stronger protections for our water supply. Already, Dewitt County and Ford County have moved forward with similar actions.
We Need a Legislative Ban to Protect the Aquifer
Earlier this year, the state of Illinois passed a bill, SB1289, that allows sequestration of CO2 with the requirement that the corporation doing the sequestration provides an alternate source of drinking water if the sequestration activity contaminates a drinking water source. The bill assumes that an alternate source exists and requires the companies to provide access to the alternate source.
However, the sole-source designation means that there is no reasonably available alternative drinking water source for users of the Mahomet Aquifer. Therefore, no company would be able to provide an alternate source.
At the state level, lawmakers are stepping up to address this gap and safeguard the Mahomet Aquifer from the risks posed by carbon sequestration.
In September, Illinois State Senator Paul Faraci and Representative Carol Ammons introduced legislation aimed at banning carbon sequestration projects under and around the Mahomet Aquifer. These bills, SB 2421 and HB 5874, will be considered during November’s veto session.
What You Can Do To Help
First, show up this Thursday, October 10, to the Champaign County Board meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Brookens Center to support a ban on carbon sequestration through the Mahomet Aquifer in Champaign County.
Can’t make it on Thursday? You can also support this work financially. This work, which is moving fast in response to the threat of new project proposals, has been largely member-funded up to this point, and we need your support to protect our water.
By joining us, you’ll be standing up for Clean Water Forever — not just for yourself, but for future generations. Together, we can ensure that the Mahomet Aquifer remains free from the risks of carbon sequestration and that our communities continue to thrive.
For more information and to get involved, visit ProtectTheMahomet.com. Let’s rally together to protect our drinking water!
This October, we are highlighting the horrors of pollution in Illinois. Each Sunday this month, we will highlight a different issue that we’re working to clean up, stop in its tracks and work to ensure that all Illinoisians have a right to a healthful environment, as ensured in our Illinois Constitution. This week our series continues as we dive into carbon sequestration, its influence and impact on Illinois.
