SB230 Alabama 2024 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Greg AlbrittonSenator

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2024

Title

Geologic storage, completion certificate and its implications, funds to manage open and closed reservoirs, pore space possession, leasing state land as these relate to carbon dioxide provided.

Summary

SB230 clarifies pore-space ownership, establishes rules for underground carbon dioxide storage, and creates state funds to regulate and manage both active and closed CO2 storage facilities.

What This Bill Does

It designates pore space below surface land as owned by surface owners and allows it to be conveyed separately, while clarifying that existing oil, gas, or mineral agreements do not automatically convey pore space unless specifically included. It gives the State Oil and Gas Board authority to approve CO2 storage facilities, may amalgamate storage rights under certain conditions, and requires consideration of competing rights and mining operations. It creates two funds to support regulation and long-term management of CO2 storage and authorizes leasing state pore space for underground CO2 storage, with a certificate of project closure potentially transferring long-term monitoring to the state.

Who It Affects

• Surface landowners who would own the pore space below their land and may see pore-space rights conveyed separately from surface rights.
• CO2 storage facility operators and other pore-space/mineral rights holders (including coal mine operators and mineral owners) who must obtain consent, may be compensated, and are subject to board rules and approval processes.

Key Provisions

• Pore space is defined and surface owners are recognized as owning pore space below their land; pore space can be conveyed separately from surface rights; existing agreements prior to Oct 1, 2024 are grandfathered.
• The State Oil and Gas Board may approve CO2 storage facilities, and may amalgamate storage rights under certain conditions; the board must consider competing rights and the distance from underground mining operations.
• Two funds are created: an Underground Carbon Dioxide Storage Facility Administrative Fund for active facilities and a Underground Carbon Dioxide Storage Facility Trust Fund for closed facilities; funds are funded by administrative fees and other amounts, invested by the State Treasurer, and spent only as budgeted and appropriated.
• A certificate of project closure and completion may be issued after notice, public hearing, and consultation with ADEM, and after at least ten years since injection ended; the certificate transfers title to long-term monitoring equipment to the state and shifts monitoring responsibilities to the state, with operator releases from related regulatory duties and bonds.
• The Commissioner may lease pore space on state lands for underground CO2 storage.
• Operators must attempt good-faith consent from pore-space owners; consent of not less than 66 2/3 percent allows the board to order amalgamation on just terms; non-consenting owners must be fairly compensated.
• For operations in Blue Creek or Mary Lee coal seams (Jefferson, Tuscaloosa, Walker Counties) or within 10 miles of a coal mine, written consent from the coal mine operator and mineral owner is required and must not be unreasonably withheld or delayed.
• Operators must use commercially reasonable efforts to limit adverse surface-use impacts on non-consenting owners.
• The board may adopt rules necessary to implement and administer the division.
• The act becomes effective on October 1, 2024.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Conservation & Natural Resources