This week, I’m looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with my family, enjoying good food and plenty of football. I have many things to be thankful for this year, including the opportunity to serve in the Nebraska Legislature on your behalf.

One thing I constantly thank God for is the gift of building a family and life in Nebraska. We are very fortunate to live in a state that values and rewards hard work, ingenuity, and common-sense principles. My longstanding commitment to economic development, community service, and now public service through the Legislature is driven by a desire to protect our way of life. Part of that mission is advancing Nebraska’s leading industry – agriculture.

I’ve seen some misinformation going around about an emerging opportunity that is closely tied to evolving agricultural markets that I’d like to address this week: carbon sequestration. Simply put, carbon sequestration is the process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide (CO2). Some carbon sequestration happens naturally through the biological processes of plants, soil, and large bodies of water. Other sequestration happens through man-made processes.

Recently, in Nebraska, we’ve seen several companies who want to capture CO2 waste from industrial operations – mostly ethanol plants – which is then compressed and transported for injection into rock formations for permanent storage instead of being vented into the atmosphere. It is important to understand the risks and the rewards.

CO2 is a naturally occurring gas that is nonflammable, nonpoisonous, and nontoxic. CO2 is used every day in the bottling industry to give drinks their fizz, in the beef and pork industries to keep meat cold in transit, in the medical industry, and more. It is also a byproduct of ethanol production. Pipelines have been moving CO2 in ethanol production for over a decade, and there are thousands of miles of pipelines that transport tens of millions of tons of CO2 in the U.S. every year.

Despite incidents with other gas pipelines – including those mixing CO2 with other gases – a fatality has never occurred due to a CO2 pipeline incident in over 50 years of operations. The most likely effect of a CO2 pipeline incident is that the CO2 is released into the atmosphere, which is what already happens with ethanol facilities and other industrial plants. The only true risk is if CO2 settles into a low area and displaces other gases, which can only happen in certain weather conditions and is easily addressed by spraying water on the area.

Now for the rewards. Nebraska’s ethanol industry supports more than 6,200 jobs and adds over $4.5 billion annually to our economy. In recent years, Nebraska ethanol has benefited from markets for carbon credits. Now, newly proposed carbon intensity requirements in California, as well as increased access to electric and more fuel-efficient vehicles, are reducing the market for Nebraska ethanol. Fortunately, the demand for sustainable aviation fuel is rapidly growing. But, ethanol can only qualify as sustainable aviation fuel if producers find a way to make production “cleaner.” That’s where carbon sequestration comes in.

By taking CO2 from ethanol plants, compressing it, and transporting it through a pipeline to a storage location, carbon sequestration can make sure Nebraska ethanol continues to have a role in the U.S. economy. Not only is this good for the ethanol industry, but it’s also good for the farmers who sell over 750 million bushels of corn to Nebraska biofuel facilities and for the cattle feeders who use the distillers grains that come from ethanol production to raise the best beef in the world. These companies also bring construction and other full-time jobs, and millions of dollars in new property tax revenue each year that go to our local governments.

I understand why the word “pipeline” brings up a lot of fears for many folks. We are constantly balancing the preservation of our natural resources with economic advancement. Before making any judgments, I would encourage you to learn more about the carbon sequestration processes and companies operating in Nebraska.

I look forward to continuing to hear from you about issues that are important to you. It is a privilege to serve as your State Senator, and I will continue to give my full effort to make a positive difference for the District and the State. You can reach me at mjacobson@leg.ne.gov or 402-471-2729.