Oregon agencies outline plan to test geologic carbon sequestration on state lands; $10 million funding request proposed

Chair Lively opened the House Climate, Energy and Environment Committee’s informational hearing on Jan. 28, when state geologists and land managers described a proposal to study geologic carbon sequestration on state lands in eastern and northern Oregon.

The presentation, led by Rory Day Stewart, director of the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) and the Oregon State Geologist, and Vicki Walker, director of the Oregon Department of State Lands, laid out technical, regulatory and financing steps the agencies say are needed to determine whether Columbia River Basalt beneath parts of the state could be used to store carbon dioxide safely and permanently. "I am the director of DOGAMI and the Oregon State Geologist," Day Stewart told committee members. Walker described a policy option package in the governor’s budget to fund a project study with state land funds and said the state land board could authorize up to $10,000,000 from the Common School Fund Land Revolving Account to support initial work.

Why it matters: presenters said the Columbia River Basalt…