Class VI Primacy: What is it?

Carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) refers to the process of capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from a facility’s air emissions stream and permanently storing it underground. To inject carbon dioxide underground as part of that process, companies in the U.S. must have a Class VI permit under the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Underground Injection Control (UIC) program. The permitting process is vital to ensuring the safety and permanence of CO₂ storage. 

If states (or territories or tribes) wish to issue and enforce CO₂ injection well permits for underground storage themselves, rather than rely on EPA, they can apply to EPA for what’s called “primacy.” The EPA grants primacy over Class VI wells only after finding that the state has regulatory provisions at least as stringent as federal requirements, adequate procedures for their enforcement, and sufficient resources to implement the program.