Committee authorizes public hearing on carbon-sequestration zoning ordinance, requires mapping and special permits for unmapped southern acres

The Champaign County Environment and Land Use Committee voted to authorize a public hearing on a proposed zoning-text amendment intended to regulate carbon sequestration activities and to adopt a scientist-recommended map of the Mahomet Aquifer.

Committee member Mr. Farney, who opened discussion, said the task force presented three principal recommendations: adopt a specific definition of the aquifer tied to the geophysical H‑TEM mapping, address the southern 4.6 miles of the county that were not mapped by the helicopter survey, and recommend the final ordinance text. "It's the most accurate science-based definition of the aquifer," Farney said of the H‑TEM–based map the scientists proposed.

Mr. Hall told the committee the Zoning Board of Appeals vote and the task force findings are reflected in a handout and pointed committee members to "figure 24 on page 52" of the report as the authoritative map the scientists recommended. He summarized the task force outcome: the panel voted 4–1 to require geophysical mapping for any proposed carbon-sequestration activity in the southern 4.6 miles and to require a special-use permit there so applicants must perform site-specific studies before proceeding.

The special-use permit requirement means carbon-sequestration proposals inside that unmapped southern strip will be treated differently from proposals inside the newly mapped aquifer area; companies or landowners seeking to operate there would be required to perform their own geophysical studies and secure the special permit before construction. The task force members said the extra step is intended to protect other land uses and prevent regulatory surprises for property owners.

The county noted the H‑TEM geophysical survey that informed the map was funded through ARPA. Mr. Farney said scientists on the task force preferred basing the ordinance on the best available geophysical evidence; members also discussed concerns raised by the Farm Bureau that designating the southern strip as aquifer without mapping could have broad effects on other activities in that area. The Farm Bureau concern was summarized in committee discussion as a reason to require site-specific mapping rather than assume the aquifer boundary.

Dr. Store, present to answer technical questions, told the committee he was available for clarifications; the committee recorded there was significant scientific input during the task force process. Mr. Hall said the draft ordinance and map are based on the report's figure 24 and that the task force recommended the map as the official, scientist-endorsed boundary.

Committee members also discussed schedule and procedure. Mr. Hall said the ordinance is docketed for the Zoning Board of Appeals on July 16 and is likely to require at least two public-hearing meetings; he estimated the earliest the committee could reconsider the ordinance would be in September or October. The county moratorium on carbon-sequestration activity remains in place through the end of November.

The committee voted to authorize the public hearing and send the draft to the Zoning Board of Appeals. The hearing will determine public comment and may produce further amendments before the committee votes on adoption later in the year.