Poet Biorefining Plan
May 11, 2025 at 3:09 p.m.
Editor, Times-Union:
I'm writing in regards to the plans that Poet Biorefining and Vault 44.01 have, to build a carbon capture facility, just south of North Manchester. They plan to sequester (pressurize and pump) 250,000 tons of CO2 into the ground, every year, for 12 years. Twelve years happens to be the exact same length of time that the 45Q credits are valid for, from our government (tax payers), that they would receive, in the amount of $85 per ton sequestered.
The company Poet partnered with has been in business for four years, with zero completed projects. During a public meeting on 3/20/25, Poet and Vault stated that currently, they emit CO2 into the atmosphere, and its this CO2 that they want to capture, sequester and store safely in the ground, so as to lower their carbon footprint/score. What they failed to do, was explain fully, to the audience in attendance, exactly what happens to the CO2 that they currently emit.
On Poet'S own website there is a slogan or statement, that they stand proudly by, called the Poet Pure Promise. I will list it here, exactly as it is on their website page. "Poet BioCO2 is made with the Poet Pure Promise of quality, reliability, and sustainability. Poet BioCo2 is a form of renewable carbon dioxide that is produced during the bioethanol production process. Our BioCo2 is part of the natural growing cycle of corn, which means the CO2 that we produce is reabsorbed by the next year's corn crop, resulting in no new CO2 being added to the atmosphere. As the leader in our industry, our regenerative process results in a CO2 that is more sustainable than any other on the market."
It is a fact, that CCS (Carbon Capture Sequestration) comes with its own very real risks, including earthquakes, water contamination, ground contamination, as well as risks above ground should something rupture, releasing large quantities of CO2 into the air which can displace oxygen.
My question is this, why are they really wanting to do this? It seems to me by reading the Poet Pure Promise (which they never explained to the audience on 3/20/25), that for several years, they have had a safe, reliable, procedure in place, that quite simply adds no new CO2 to atmosphere. It’s all reabsorbed and utilized by the corn that our farmers grow each year.
The community of North Manchester and those residing several miles from us, need to know about these plans. 250,000 tons of pressurized CO2 being put into the ground every year, for 12 years, is going to spread. We could all be affected by this, but again, why does it even need to be done?
Josh Leffel
North Manchester, via email
Editor, Times-Union:
I'm writing in regards to the plans that Poet Biorefining and Vault 44.01 have, to build a carbon capture facility, just south of North Manchester. They plan to sequester (pressurize and pump) 250,000 tons of CO2 into the ground, every year, for 12 years. Twelve years happens to be the exact same length of time that the 45Q credits are valid for, from our government (tax payers), that they would receive, in the amount of $85 per ton sequestered.
The company Poet partnered with has been in business for four years, with zero completed projects. During a public meeting on 3/20/25, Poet and Vault stated that currently, they emit CO2 into the atmosphere, and its this CO2 that they want to capture, sequester and store safely in the ground, so as to lower their carbon footprint/score. What they failed to do, was explain fully, to the audience in attendance, exactly what happens to the CO2 that they currently emit.
On Poet'S own website there is a slogan or statement, that they stand proudly by, called the Poet Pure Promise. I will list it here, exactly as it is on their website page. "Poet BioCO2 is made with the Poet Pure Promise of quality, reliability, and sustainability. Poet BioCo2 is a form of renewable carbon dioxide that is produced during the bioethanol production process. Our BioCo2 is part of the natural growing cycle of corn, which means the CO2 that we produce is reabsorbed by the next year's corn crop, resulting in no new CO2 being added to the atmosphere. As the leader in our industry, our regenerative process results in a CO2 that is more sustainable than any other on the market."
It is a fact, that CCS (Carbon Capture Sequestration) comes with its own very real risks, including earthquakes, water contamination, ground contamination, as well as risks above ground should something rupture, releasing large quantities of CO2 into the air which can displace oxygen.
My question is this, why are they really wanting to do this? It seems to me by reading the Poet Pure Promise (which they never explained to the audience on 3/20/25), that for several years, they have had a safe, reliable, procedure in place, that quite simply adds no new CO2 to atmosphere. It’s all reabsorbed and utilized by the corn that our farmers grow each year.
The community of North Manchester and those residing several miles from us, need to know about these plans. 250,000 tons of pressurized CO2 being put into the ground every year, for 12 years, is going to spread. We could all be affected by this, but again, why does it even need to be done?
Josh Leffel
North Manchester, via email