Iowa DNR will monitor proposed oil refinery
By Dave Dreeszen Journal business editor| Posted: Thursday, February 14, 2008
ChristSioux City Councilmen Jim Rixner, middle, and Aaron Rochester, right, react as House Minority Leader Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, left, answers a question Wednesday during Sioux City’s lobbying trip to the Iowa Capitol. (Staff photo by Dave Dreeszen)
DES MOINES -- The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is closely monitoring an oil refinery proposed for neighboring South Dakota, a key Iowa regulator said Wednesday.
"We're concerned about the air quality impact on Sioux City," Wayne Gieselman, administrator of the DNR's Environmental Services Division, told a delegation of local business and government leaders. "We certainly have a responsibility to protect the health of our citizens who are breathing the air in our state."
Hyperion Resources hopes to build a $10 billion refinery and power plant just upstream from Sioux City in Union County, S.D. The Dallas, Texas-based energy firm insists its "green" energy center would be the cleanest oil refinery ever built.
Gieselman said state regulatory authority for the proposed refinery clearly rests with South Dakota. But Iowa DNR intends to share any concerns it has over the refinery's emissions, not only with its South Dakota counterparts, but also the regional federal Environmental Protection Agency office.
During the period for public comments on the refinery's application for an air quality permit, the Iowa DNR would have an opportunity to influence the process, he said.
In addition to air quality issues, Gieselman said the Iowa DNR is exploring what demands the refinery would put on the state's "long-term water supply."
Hyperion proposes to use 12 million gallons of water per day to cool the energy center, drawing water from the nearby Missouri River and shallow wells along it. Cooled water would be returned to the river after going through a treatment process.
During Wednesday's meeting at the DNR offices in the Wallace Building, City Councilman Jim Rixner noted that Missouri River wells supply the bulk of Sioux City's water supply.
Siouxland Chamber President Debi Durham urged Gieselman and his department to cooperate with the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources on pollution controls for the refinery. Durham said she and other local business leaders recently returned from a meeting at the South Dakota Capitol in Pierre, where DENR officials showed them a map where they plan to locate a series of air quality monitors.
The Chamber's economic development arm is among the local groups that support Hyperion's plans in Union County.
Hyperion, which is seeking to rezone more than 3,000 acres of farmland it has optioned, has pledged to use the most environmentally advanced technology to refine 400,000 barrels of crude per day from Alberta, Canada.
The refinery, which would be the first built in the United States since 1976, would create an average of 4,500 construction jobs over four years, and 1,800 permanent jobs when it's up and running.
"We're concerned about the air quality impact on Sioux City," Wayne Gieselman, administrator of the DNR's Environmental Services Division, told a delegation of local business and government leaders. "We certainly have a responsibility to protect the health of our citizens who are breathing the air in our state."
Hyperion Resources hopes to build a $10 billion refinery and power plant just upstream from Sioux City in Union County, S.D. The Dallas, Texas-based energy firm insists its "green" energy center would be the cleanest oil refinery ever built.
Gieselman said state regulatory authority for the proposed refinery clearly rests with South Dakota. But Iowa DNR intends to share any concerns it has over the refinery's emissions, not only with its South Dakota counterparts, but also the regional federal Environmental Protection Agency office.
During the period for public comments on the refinery's application for an air quality permit, the Iowa DNR would have an opportunity to influence the process, he said.
In addition to air quality issues, Gieselman said the Iowa DNR is exploring what demands the refinery would put on the state's "long-term water supply."
Hyperion proposes to use 12 million gallons of water per day to cool the energy center, drawing water from the nearby Missouri River and shallow wells along it. Cooled water would be returned to the river after going through a treatment process.
During Wednesday's meeting at the DNR offices in the Wallace Building, City Councilman Jim Rixner noted that Missouri River wells supply the bulk of Sioux City's water supply.
Siouxland Chamber President Debi Durham urged Gieselman and his department to cooperate with the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources on pollution controls for the refinery. Durham said she and other local business leaders recently returned from a meeting at the South Dakota Capitol in Pierre, where DENR officials showed them a map where they plan to locate a series of air quality monitors.
The Chamber's economic development arm is among the local groups that support Hyperion's plans in Union County.
Hyperion, which is seeking to rezone more than 3,000 acres of farmland it has optioned, has pledged to use the most environmentally advanced technology to refine 400,000 barrels of crude per day from Alberta, Canada.
The refinery, which would be the first built in the United States since 1976, would create an average of 4,500 construction jobs over four years, and 1,800 permanent jobs when it's up and running.
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Remember wrote on Jun 15, 2009 8:58 PM:
YUCK! "
Dakota wrote on Feb 14, 2008 9:18 AM:
Each time I drive to Omaha for shopping or entertainment I'm surprised by odor corridor on I29.
Water use in SD a concern? How much water does SC industries use currently?
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Mark wrote on Feb 14, 2008 9:03 AM: