Tallgrass updates Gage County on Trailblazer CO2 lateral plan; board files presentation

Beatrice, Neb. — Tallgrass on Wednesday told the Gage County Board of Supervisors it plans to install a CO2 lateral that would run roughly 28 miles through Gage County as part of its Trailblazer pipeline system, and outlined landowner compensation, safety measures and community investments tied to the project.

Tallgrass public affairs representative Scott Prestige and colleagues said the company converted about 392 miles of existing pipeline to carry CO2 westward and is adding laterals to serve Midwest ethanol plants. The company said the Gage County lateral would be mechanically buried with at least four feet of cover, include two aboveground valve sites, and is expected to support roughly 7–10 temporary construction jobs. Company officials said construction is targeted for early 2026 and that the project is close to bringing a first group of customers onto the system.

The county’s renewable fuels and economic development partners attended and urged the board to support access to the pipeline, citing potential market advantages for ethanol plants that can lower carbon intensity scores by sequestering emissions.

Tallgrass described several elements of the project that will affect landowners and communities. Under a community-benefits agreement Tallgrass signed with Bold Nebraska, the company provided an initial $500,000 seed payment for a Nebraska Community Foundation fund targeted to childcare, elder care and food banks for counties in the southern pipeline footprint, and pledged $40,000 annually for first-responder grants as long as the pipeline operates. Tallgrass also described a 10-year, 10-cent-per-ton royalty paid proportionally to landowners along the corridor (in addition to easement payments), and said it offers optionality in how landowners receive easement compensation.

Scott Prestige, public affairs, Tallgrass, said, “CO2 in and of itself as a product [is] nonflammable, nontoxic, nonpoisonous, noncombustible,” and stressed the company’s emphasis on training and emergency response. Sean Bates, vice president of land and right of way at Tallgrass, described construction practices: topsoil set aside, pipe stringing, welding, trenching, restoration and environmental inspection, and said the company aims to return fields to production after work is finished. Bates said valve stations will be automated and typically spaced at roughly 10-mile intervals; valve-site footprints were described as about 50 by 50 feet when fenced.

Don Caldwell of Renewable Fuels Nebraska said the pipeline can materially lower an ethanol plant’s carbon intensity score and help open low-carbon fuel markets. Caldwell told the board a plant that begins sequestering CO2 “will drop it 35 points overnight the minute they start injecting their carbon dioxide.”

Board members and presenters also discussed sequestration operations in Southeast Wyoming. Tallgrass said it has a multiwell sequestration hub in Wyoming; four of five planned wells have been drilled and the project’s first phase of wells will work in a system with a planned lifespan measured in decades (presenters estimated 15–25 years for the sequestering system). Company representatives said Wyoming currently has permitting primacy from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for Class VI sequestration wells; Nebraska has applied for primacy and has a statutory/regulatory step to complete before the EPA grants it.

Several Gage County officials raised routine concerns about depth and future land use; Tallgrass repeated that the company is building with at least four feet of cover (exceeding a three-foot federal minimum) and that the company has acquired easements voluntarily within the project area for the county route.

The board voted to place the Tallgrass presentation and correspondence on file. Board members also heard public comments from Don Caldwell and representatives of local economic development groups and volunteer fire departments, and were told first-responder trainings have been held in the county.

Votes at a glance

- Consent agenda: approved, including claims through 10/01/2025 totaling $1,221,156.25 and adding Johnny’s Welding claim (added to include claim number 2510000059 for $47.00), revised total $1,221,203.27. Motion by Dorn; second by Lytle. Vote recorded in the meeting: 6 in favor. (See actions provenance.)

- Presentation and correspondence on file (Tallgrass Trailblazer CO2 presentation and letters of support): motion by Haxby; second by Adams. Vote: 5 in favor. Motion carries.

- Advanced Correctional Healthcare agreement (Sept. 2025–June 2026): motion by Dorn; second by Adams. Agreement moves nursing coverage at the county jail from LPN to RN and increases contract cost by approximately $33,000 (as described in the meeting). Vote: 5 in favor. Motion carries.

- Resolution 25-09 (Special Use Permit 2025-1) — commercial kennel: motion by Haxby; second by Dorn. Planning & Zoning reported no public opposition and recommended approval. Vote: 5 in favor. Motion carries.

What the board will look at next

Tallgrass said construction of the lateral in and near Gage County is slated to begin in 2026 (presenters cited Q1 2026 as a target). Company officials and economic development partners encouraged continued local engagement as routing, easement agreements and permitting advance. Tallgrass and county staff advised the board the county’s ongoing role will include landowner outreach, monitoring of public-safety training for volunteer departments, and coordination on any county permits or road/utility crossings.

Sources: Presentation to the Gage County Board of Supervisors by Tallgrass public affairs and land-rights staff; public comments from Don Caldwell (Renewable Fuels Nebraska); statements and motions recorded on the Gage County Board of Supervisors meeting transcript, Oct. 1, 2025.