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Tell the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Permitting large scale CO2 pipelines as minor projects is unacceptable

As part of its on-going campaign to stop the proliferation of CO2 pipelines in Illinois, Eco-Justice Collaborative (EJC) has been monitoring their permit review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Under the authority of the Clean Water Act, the Corps must protect our nation’s surface waters by regulating the deposition of fill or dredged material into rivers, streams, and wetlands.

Pipeline construction requires crossing many surface waters, most often through open trench excavation. Under normal circumstances, projects of this scale would be reviewed as “Individual Permits” evaluating the full extent of their potential environmental impacts and providing opportunities for public notice and engagement.

Incredible as it may seem, instead of considering large scale CO2 pipelines as singular projects, the Corps of Engineers is expediting their approval via a “Nationwide Permit 58”, calling each water or wetland crossing a separate project. This minimizes agency oversight and circumvents the need for full environmental review and public involvement.

We think that this is outrageous and an abuse of the permitting system. It is a misuse of the nationwide permit program, an abuse of the National Environmental  Policy Act and contrary to the Council of Environmental Quality Guidelines calling for transparent and meaningful public engagement and environmental analysis of direct, indirect and cumulative impacts.

Will you help us send a message to the District Engineers of the Corps?

Stop treating large scale CO2 pipelines as if they are a multitude of small projects with no environmental impact.

Just fill in your contact information and click next to read the letter. You can modify this letter if you like - or send it as is.

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