Farm Progress America, August 28, 2024

Mike Pearson takes a look at a recent Supreme Court decision in South Dakota.

The South Dakota Supreme Court ruling last week created a major set back for Carbon Solutions Summit, the company behind a major carbon capture pipeline.

The Court reversed an earlier decision that had granted CSS eminent domain.

This decision comes as a victory for South Dakota residents who had sued to prevent the company from accessing their land without their consent.

At the heart of the decision is whether or not carbon dioxide is a commodity.

For CSS to gain eminent domain, it needed to prove it was common carrier like natural gas or gasoline.

However, the court found CSS had not fully demonstrated the Carbon dioxide qualified as a commodity.

The carbon dioxide would be pumped from ethanol plants and sequestered underground in North Dakota., according to the court with no apparent use.

According to the court's decision, a pipeline cannot just declare itself a common carrier and must serve the public.

CSS will have to prove a stronger case if it wants to proceed.

CSS claims the service is necessary and will provide a service to agriculture.

Farm Progress America is a daily look at key issues in agriculture. It is produced and presented by Mike Pearson, farm broadcaster and host of This Week in Agribusiness .