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University researchers brief Price City on carbon-capture study and seek community interviews
Summary
University of Utah researchers outlined carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), described geology-based storage mapping and asked Price City residents for interviews to gauge support and concerns about potential injection wells and associated pipelines or trucking.
University of Utah researchers presented an overview of carbon capture, utilization and storage and asked Price City leaders and residents for local input as federal and state agencies map potential storage sites.
Kate McGargle, an anthropologist with the University of Utah, opened the presentation by defining the technology: “Carbon capture, utilization, and storage is what CCUS stands for,” she said, explaining that captured CO2 can be either used in products or injected underground where suitable rock formations could trap it.
Laszlo Sadua, a sociologist working with the Utah Geological Survey, described the project's goals and community component. “Our goal here really is to solicit your input,” Sadua said, saying the research team wants to interview residents and gather attitudes about whether they would support wells being drilled in or near their neighborhoods.
Presenters said the research is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and that technical mapping by the Utah Geological Survey has identified areas with porous reservoir rock overlain by less-porous seals — geologic conditions favorable for long-term CO2 storage. Kate McGargle noted the maps will be made publicly available on the Utah Geological Survey's website.
Council members asked specific questions about likely drilling density and whether existing oil and gas wells would be reused. McGargle and Sadua said much depends on local geology and that in many candidate areas the project would use existing wells where feasible to avoid unnecessary new drilling. “Most of the most feasible places would involve places where those wells have already been drilled,” McGargle said.
Council members also raised transport concerns, asking whether CO2 would be trucked or piped. The presenters said infrastructure options could include pipelines, trucking or locating capture equipment next to large point sources; specifics have not been developed and the technical partners are still defining aboveground plans.
Presenters framed the study as information-gathering, not advocacy, and emphasized a community-benefits component. Sadua said the research team will use interviews and focus groups to identify what residents would want from projects and what they fear, so benefits are not removed from the local community while costs or risks remain.
The researchers left contact information and handouts and invited people to sign up for interviews after the meeting or to reach out by email or phone.
The council did not take action at the workshop; researchers said maps and more technical details will be published and that they will follow up to schedule interviews.
