Wabash Valley Resources (WVR) plans to repurpose the former Duke Energy coal gasification plant in West Terre Haute to produce hydrogen using petroleum coke as the primary feedstock. They intend to produce  hydrogen to make ammonia fertilizer. However, they have also indicated the possibility that they might sell the hydrogen directly to an offtaker, or that they might generate electricity from the hydrogen, presumably to sell power into the wholesale energy markets.

WVR wants to create, transport, and dump 1.67 million tons of waste carbon dioxide (CO2) every year for 12 years, which would make Vigo and Vermillion Counties the largest CO2 dump in U.S. history. This process is called "Carbon Capture and Sequestration," or CCS.

This project has been enabled ONLY because the state government gave WVR eminent domain and limited their liability, and the federal government is providing WVR with significant funding.

Wabash Valley Resources intends to do the following:

• Generate 1.67 million tons of CO2 waste every year for 12 years.
• Capture the waste carbon dioxide they generate at their plant.
• Build an 11-mile pipeline, buried only 5 feet deep, through Vigo and Vermillion Counties.
• Highly pressurize the CO2 to 2,100 PSI to transport it to the dump sites - one in Vigo County, one in Vermillion County. 
• Inject the CO2 waste into the ground, creating underground plumes which can spread for miles through cracks, fractures, faults, voids, pores and other passageways in the earth (like abandoned mine shafts).

Our State Legislators caused this!

After five years of lobbying and over $88,000 in campaign contributions - and CAC fighting it every step of the way - Wabash Valley Resources received two pieces of special legislation from the Indiana General Assembly: SEA442 (2019)  and SEA451 (2023). Together, these bills:

• Strip private property owners in Vigo and Vermillion Counties of their property rights, granting WVR the right of eminent domain for the pipelines and the right to condemn private property for the CO2 dumps.
• Shift the burden of proving damage, harm, or injury resulting from the project onto the backs of the public, effectively immunizing investors from risk.  

Risks and Hazards of CCS:

CCS is a false climate solution that is way too expensive, will actually increase emissions, and will be an environmental and public health disaster.

• Earthquakes – The area where they intend to dump their CO2 waste sits in the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone.  The U.S. Geological Survey is still attempting to determine whether CCS is even safe, geologically speaking.

   

  Check out this 2019 article by Tyler Sebree of ABC 57 in South Bend: The chance of a major earthquake in or near Indiana may surprise you.

• Asphyxiation & Stalled Vehicles – Carbon dioxide is heavier than air. If released, it will pool in one area and displace oxygen, resulting in asphyxiation and/or death of animals and humans in the area.

   

  Symptoms could also include:

  comas dizziness

  seizures arrhythmias

  elevated blood pressure brain and/or lung damage

   

  And since vehicles require oxygen for combustion, this would also result in vehicles stalling, which would make it impossible to use vehicles to evacuate the area or to get to injured people.

• CO2 migrating to the surface - there are numerous abandoned mine shafts in the area that could give the CO2 access to the surface. In 2009, a report was released by the Indiana DNR and the U.S. Geological Survey, entitled, The Occurrence and Mitigation of Carbon Dioxide in Homes Built on Reclaimed Coal Mines. Their findings indicate that CO2 is already entering the basements of new construction homes on mined lands in Indiana. This project is likely to exacerbate that problem, which could have deadly consequences.

• Water and soil contamination – The release of CO2 into underground water or other waterways would result in contamination of our drinking water and the leaching of other contaminants, such as lead and mercury. The CO2 dump locations are near the Wabash River which could compromise not only local water but also the water for the 72% of Indiana counties who are served by the Wabash River and its connected rivers and streams.

   

  The release of CO2 could cause damage to aquifers and the acidification of water, as well as damage to soil and crops. A significant concern for the impact on water and soil is that Vigo and Vermillion Counties are home to the state-endangered plains leopard frog.

• Pipeline Leaks and Ruptures – Pipeline accidents have and will continue to occur. A CO2 pipeline leak in Satartia, Mississippi in 2020  led to the evacuation of 200 people and the hospitalization of 45 people. Cars and trucks stopped working, creating challenges for emergency responders. 

Next Steps for Wabash Valley Resources

This project still requires actions or approvals from multiple State and Federal agencies.

At the federal level, these agencies include:

• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• The Department of Energy (DOE)
• Potentially the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)

At the state level, these agencies include:

• The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
• The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM)
• The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC)

Carbon Dioxide Dumps

In January 2024, the EPA issued final permits for two Class VI wells, one each in Vigo and Vermillion counties, to authorize Wabash Valley Resources to begin construction of the two wells, although those permits are under appeal before the Environmental Appeals Board. Further approval would be needed before Wabash Valley Resources is authorized to begin dumping their CO2 waste.

Carbon Dioxide Pipeline

Wabash Valley Resources may file at DNR for a Carbon Dioxide Transmission Pipeline Certificate of Authority to construct and operate the CO2 pipelines. Wabash Valley Resources would need to display that they have the have the “financial, managerial, and technical ability to construct, operate, and maintain a carbon dioxide transmission pipeline in Indiana.” Under the law, DNR must hold one public information session in one of the counties through which the pipeline will travel. It is unclear whether Wabash Valley Resources has begun this process at DNR or not. 

WVR would also need to enter into an agreement with the IURC “concerning the mitigation of agricultural impacts associated with the construction of the proposed carbon dioxide transmission pipeline” and agree to abide by rules and regulations of the IURC Pipeline Division. It is also unknown whether Wabash Valley Resources has engaged with the IURC or not. 

Gasifier and Power Block

In March 2022, Wabash Valley Resources filed at IDEM for significant modifications for the air permits related to the toxic emissions at the gasification plant. IDEM issued findings on those applications on July 14, 2023, which opened a comment period through August 13, 2023. That comment period has now closed at IDEM. It is unknown when IDEM will take final action. It is also unclear whether additional approvals will be required from IDEM before the plant can begin operations. 

Should Wabash Valley Resources decide to inject power into the grid and sell power into the wholesale energy markets, approvals from both FERC and the IURC would likely be required.