In southern Alabama, a major underground carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, the Pine Hills Storage Hub, is slated for the woods of Covington County.
Laurie Lundy, who lives in the nearby Conecuh National Forest on land that once belonged to her husband’s great-grandparents, is among those worried about the project’s impacts. She said the lack of community input has been “a huge problem.”
Proposed by Reliant CCS, the Pine Hills project plans to store carbon dioxide (CO2) beneath roughly 104,000 acres owned by a timberlands real estate investment trust. Covington County spans about 660,000 acres in total.
Following the outcry from residents, the Covington County Commission unanimously adopted a resolution opposing the project. State officials also introduced legislation that would let residents vote whether to ban CCS wells in the county — but the bill was delayed by a state committee in February, with its chairman, Andy Whitt, citing concerns about how the legislation impacted other counties and property owners’ rights. Whitt did not respond to a request for comment.
Lundy is concerned that voters still aren’t being heard in her state, or in others that are welcoming CCS projects, despite dissent from the communities where they plan to build.
