E&E News: DEMS WARN AGAINST TEXAS CLASS VI PRIMACY

DEMS WARN AGAINST TEXAS CLASS VI PRIMACY: Seven Texas Democrats are warning EPA not to hand over permitting authority for carbon sequestration wells to the state of Texas, arguing the state agency charged with overseeing the industry has a “sorry history of lax regulations and enforcement.” Texas is among several states pursuing primacy over so-called Class VI wells as EPA struggles to speed up its permitting process, even as the fossil fuel industry and the Biden administration are turning to carbon capture to meet their climate goals.

But the Democrats led by Reps. Lloyd Doggett and Joaquin Castro wrote in a letter to EPA Monday that it shouldn’t relinquish control to the Texas Railroad Commission at a “pivotal time to ensure permits are reviewed with great care and stringent adherence to the Safe Drinking Water Act.” POLITICO reported last year on the RRC’s close ties to the fossil fuel industry it is charged with regulating.

The lawmakers posed a series of questions to EPA on how it would “ensure that this process is transparent and fair to Texans.” EPA said it was reviewing the letter and would respond appropriately.

Patty Ramon, spokesperson for the Railroad Commission, said in a statement that the agency is “in the best position” to evaluate the specifics of each well application and has a “decades-long history of effectively regulating various classes of injection wells to protect public safety and the environment.” She noted that the Class VI well permitting program would build on its fracking program, which has regulated the “injection of billions of gallons of liquids.” And she said RRC had already conducted community outreach to inform citizens about carbon management, including a recent public event in Houston.