By Ashlyn Little

The Hackberry community center held a public hearing this week regarding the permitting for the proposed Hackberry carbon sequestration project. The project is expected to capture and store CO2 and potentially reduce the carbon intensity of the liquefied natural gas for Cameron LNG customers.

The proposed project includes capturing CO2 from the liquefaction process at Cameron LNG and transporting it by pipeline to an underground injection well where it will be
stored about 5,000 to 10,000 feet below the earth’s surface.

Cameron Police Juror Michael Fewell, a resident of Hackberry, told attendees that Sempra Energy — the parent company of Cameron LNG — is being “a good community partner.”

“We’ve had a few meetings with them and they’ve really taken some comments that we’ve made around the location of the pipeline routes … into consideration to pretty much stay on their property and they’re supposed to get back with us,” Fewell said.

Jeremy Shealy, representing ExxonMobile, also showed his support of the approval of the Class 6 permit.

“ExxonMobile recognizes that LNG and CCS (carbon capture and storage) are a significant part of the oil and gas industry’s future and they are thrilled to see innovative industry solutions in the state. With that I respectfully give ExxonMobile’s support for approval of the permit,” Shealy said.

Cameron resident Mindy Gilbert, however, voiced her opposition to the project, calling its simulations “fake science and not based on true data.”

“The science is unfounded, unproven, it’s only accurate on computer simulations, there’s no way of knowing what’s going to happen with the plume in subservice,” Gilbert said.

A plume can migrate through different forms, including free-phase CO2, dissolved CO2 in the aqueous phase and mineral trapping, according to carboncapture.com.

Gilbert said Sempra does not know if the plume is going to move, which means people who have land around that plume are not going to be able to drill if it does.

It’s going to decimate the small oil and gas companies over here because they’re not going to be able to use their wells, she said.

“There’s only one reason to do carbon capture and that’s for the 45Q federal tax credits,” Gilbert said. “It’s detrimental in every way; there’s nothing beneficial in doing this at all, it is only for money.”

According to irs.gov, the 45Q credit provides incentives for carbon capture and sequestration projects for each metric ton of qualified carbon oxide captured and either stored in secure geologic formations or used for specified purposes. A direct air capture facility must capture no less than 1,000 metric tons of qualified carbon oxide during the taxable year to qualify. 

Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance President and CEO Scott Walker announced his support for the project during the meeting.

“One of the biggest advantages we have here in SWLA is our geology,” Walker said. “Our region’s unique geology makes it ideal for safely storing carbon dioxide.”

Longville resident Michael Tritico is opposed to the project. Tritico, who was raised in Lake Charles and has since resided in other locations around the country, said he moved back to Southwest Louisiana because “here is where the frontline of the global war is.”

“In Louisiana we’ve traded the old way of life for new ways of death. Hackberry is not what it used to be in 1975. Some might consider it progress, I see a lot of changes for the negative,” said Tritico — who called the project a sham.

Patrick Courreges, communications Director of Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, assured attendees that DENR will be on hand to make sure the project is safe if it is approved.

“Above all, it has to stay in that injected zone where it’s being pushed. If it starts moving up that’s when we need to shut them down,” Courreges said.

James Hiatt, representing an organization called ‘”For A Better Bayou” said he is also opposed to the project.

“I used to work in the industry and someone once told me, ‘If you could see the rug for the amount of stuff that we’ve swept under it, the rug is halfway to the moon.’ I think the DENR should deny this permit and we should get more information about the suitability of this exact location,” he said.

Public comments will continue to be accepted through 4:30 p.m.  June 5 at info@la.gov. Mail comments must be postmarked by June 5.