PRESS RELEASE: Indiana Landowners Decry State Dept. of Natural Resources’ Enactment of Weak Carbon Capture Rules
Busload of landowners and advocates arrive in Indianapolis to testify at IN DNR public hearing on state carbon capture rules
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 16, 2025
Indiana Landowners Decry State Dept. of Natural Resources’ Enactment of Weak Carbon Capture Rules
Busload of advocates traveled to Indianapolis last week to testify at public hearing
Indianapolis – Landowners and concerned citizens in Indiana criticized the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on Tuesday for failing to protect its citizens by enacting weak rules governing risky and unproven “carbon capture and storage” (CCS) technology.
The new rules were obviously written to please industrial polluters, including Wabash Valley Resources which has proposed injecting 1.67 million tons of carbon dioxide annually into an underground sequestration waste dump, part of its plan to produce what the company claims will be “low-carbon-intensity” anhydrous ammonia fertilizer.
The DNR’s decision to adopt these rules comes on the heels of overwhelming opposition from landowners and community members targeted by risky carbon capture and storage projects. Last week, a busload of landowners and community members traveled to Indianapolis to testify in favor of stronger protections during a public hearing held by the DNR. They called out the proposed definitions as overly vague, and voiced concerns about eminent domain abuse, and potential leaks and contamination of water sources, while calling for verification of voluntary easements signed by landowners, and pushing for stronger insurance requirements for proposed CO2 injection wells.
"The Indiana DNR passing their proposed Carbon Sequestration rules is an absolute dereliction of duty,” said Whitney Boyce, Vigo County resident. “They purposefully ignored all requests for safety, setbacks, and meaningful regulations and even refused to clarify the process for verifying the 60% voluntary easements required before allowing Wabash Valley Resources to use eminent domain to take our land. They held hearings and meetings hours from the communities directly impacted by the State's only CCS pilot project, and refused to post the agenda 48 hours in advance as per state law. They have created nothing but obstacles to block public engagement. Wabash Valley Resources has been sneaking around behind the scenes for years and the Statehouse has denied the community directly impacted by their pilot CCS experiment a seat at the table. Tonight's decision in Indiana was nothing short of prioritizing companies over people and profits over safety in their rush to sell-out citizens and make Indiana nothing more than a dumping ground. It is clear the people making the laws in Indiana do not understand the intricacies of the issues surrounding CCS and the very real risks these dumps will bring."
The bus trip by landowners was sponsored by the Indiana Action Team, a new state-based legal co-op. The IAT, which is also supported by Bold Education Fund, was created to pool the resources of landowners who oppose eminent domain and have concerns ranging from safety and leaks – like the recent leak from ADM’s CCS facility in Illinois – to the wasteful 45Q tax credits that are the financial lynchpin for projects such as Wabash Valley Resources in Indiana, which is dependent on a $1.5 billion loan guarantee made by the Dept. of Energy during the Biden administration.
Emma Schmit, Bold Alliance’s Pipeline Fighters Director, stated, “The final approval of these industry-favored regulations is a disservice to the people of Indiana. These rules don’t regulate the carbon capture industry – they enable it, and put the land and lives of Hoosiers at risk in the process. Attorney General Rokita must deny these rules and force the DNR to develop rules that do not undermine the rights to private property and due process.“
About Indiana Action Team:
The Indiana Action Team landowners’ legal co-op works to educate landowners and to support organizing those who are opposed to eminent domain for private gain, and works with attorneys to file landowner legal challenges to proposed CO2 waste dump and pipeline projects, and lawsuits and appeals including constitutional challenges and condemnation litigation. (https://indianaactionteam.org)
About Bold Alliance:
The Bold Alliance is a network of “small and mighty” groups in rural states working to protect land and water. We fight fossil fuel projects, protect landowners against eminent domain abuse, and work for clean energy solutions while building an engaged base of citizens who care about the land, water, and climate change. (https://boldalliance.org)
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VIEW INDIANA DNR MEETING, PUBLIC TESTIMONY & VOTE (STARTS AT 54:00)