EPA Approves West Virginia’s Class VI Primacy Application

On Tuesday, February 18, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin, along with representatives from the Department of the Interior and Congress, signed and approved a final rule for West Virginia to inject carbon dioxide (CO2) into deep rock formations in the state.

By granting the state primacy for Class VI Wells under the Safe Drinking Water Act, EPA recognizes that West Virginia is well-positioned to protect underground sources of drinking water while bolstering energy independence.

This rule approval, along with the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works hearing on Advancing Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Sequestration Technologies, is the first of many actions by Congress and EPA to understand and implement the Trump Administration’s Great American Comeback Initiative. This initiative includes five pillars to meet the EPA’s mission, (1) Clean Air, Land, and Water for Every American; (2) Restore American Energy Dominance; (3) Permitting Reform, Cooperative Federalism, and Cross-Agency Partnership; (4) Make the United States the Artificial Intelligence Capital of the World; and (5) Protecting and Bringing Back American Auto Jobs, while simultaneously energizing the American economy.