IGS Researchers Evaluating Carbon Sequestration as Option to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

---

The Indiana Geological Survey (IGS), a research institute of Indiana University, is collaborating with a group of state agencies, universities, and private companies to test the potential of sequestering or storing carbon dioxide underground in oil and gas fields, coal seams, and brine-filled aquifers. Much of the carbon dioxide emitted by the U.S. comes from coal-fired power and ethanol plants located within the Midwest.

The IGS has just completed the Phase I of the evaluation, a two-year feasibility assessment of the possibility using the state’s deep subsurface geology as a repository for carbon dioxide produced locally. The research forms part of the work being conducted by two research consortia sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE): the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership and the Midwest Geologic Sequestration Consortium. These consortia are two of the seven regional partnerships that were formed to cover the nation. These research consortia are a key part of President Bush's Global Climate Change Initiative, whose stated goal is to reduce American-made greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by the year 2018.

"It is clear that this research is of value toward addressing the challenge of balancing continued fossil-fuel usage with its relationship to climate change," said Project Director John A. Rupp, who will oversee IGS's contributions to the consortia. "The work that was completed in Phase I of the project has indicated that there are numerous possibilities within Indiana where this evolving technique can be tested. The value-added aspect of the process is especially important for Indiana because of the coal as well as oil and gas production that occurs here. Our hope is that the use of carbon sequestration will facilitate the use of new clean-coal technologies that allow for the consumption of domestic fossil-fuel resources in an economic and environmentally sound manner."

Within Phase II of the program, the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership will be funded over four years by $19.8 million from a combination of DOE, state, and private partners. Participants within the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium will receive $18.1 million over four years from the DOE and a similar consortium of partners.

For a complete list of partners and other information about the DOE consortia go to:
DOE Advances Commercialization of Climate Change Technology.

Copyright © 2005, The Trustees of Indiana University