DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — Beneath the surface of Decatur, more than 5,000 feet underground, carbon dioxide from ADM’s ethanol production is being permanently stored.
It is part of a project that has positioned central Illinois at the forefront of carbon capture and storage technology.
Archer Daniels Midland has been operating its carbon capture and storage (CCS) program in Decatur for 15 years. Company leaders said the facility was the first to complete deep saline injection of carbon dioxide onshore anywhere in the world.
“We've been doing carbon capture and storage here for 15 years,” said Matt Kaloupek, Vice President of Carbon Capture and Storage at ADM. “We started in 2011 with the first deep saline injection done onshore anywhere in the world. So we're really a pioneer in this space.”
The process begins at ADM’s ethanol fermenters. Instead of releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the gas is captured, dehydrated and compressed before being injected deep underground.
“Carbon capture and storage is a process that involves catching CO2 that comes from our ethanol fermenters here in Decatur, removing water, compressing it into a liquid-like state and pumping it into the ground where it dissolves into native saline water in a sandstone formation that's more than 5,000 feet below the surface,” Kaloupek explained.
Over the past decade and a half, ADM said it has refined its understanding of how carbon dioxide behaves underground and how to ensure long-term safety.
“We've learned a lot about how the CO2 acts underneath within the aquifer,” Kaloupek said. “We've learned a lot about what metallurgies work and how long they last. We've learned how to configure the wells to ensure the integrity of both the rock and the geology, and our operation.”
Kaloupek acknowledged that CCS differs from ADM’s traditional agribusiness operations and that questions from the community are expected.
“This business interacts with the community in a different way, and we understand that,” he said. “So we have to embrace engagement with the community.”
To do that, ADM and Richland Community College have partnered to host CCS Community Learning Days. It is an interactive event designed to give community members a firsthand look at how the technology works.
During CCS Community Learning Day, community members get hands-on experience at the site of one of the nation’s largest active carbon storage operations. They also hear directly from geologists, engineers and first responders about how CCS works, how it is monitored, and why central Illinois is uniquely suited to lead.
The event, held on Richland’s campus, also provides landowners with the opportunity to get clear answers about how the process works underground, how property rights are respected and what long-term protections are in place.
Kaloupek said the format is intentionally open and conversational.
“That’s very unique,” he said. “You get to ask the same questions I did when I started this job a year and a half ago … You get to ask people who are experts in what we do.”
He said one of the biggest misconceptions surrounding the project is a lack of transparency.
“I think people have the misconception that we haven’t been transparent with the community,” Kaloupek said. “Learning Day is a big part of showing people that we are here to answer questions.”
ADM's work in carbon capture has also attracted additional low-carbon energy development to Decatur.
Matt Mangum, senior vice president of development for Low Carbon Infrastructure, is leading the Broadwing Energy project, a 400-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant planned for Decatur.
"It is the first of its kind at this scale," he said, "It's an opportunity to build a natural gas-fired power plant with carbon capture on top of it."
The facility will provide power and steam directly to ADM's operations, while also sending some electricity onto the grid, where it will be purchased by Google.
Mangum said Decatur stood out because of ADM's experience operating a Class VI carbon injection well for more than a decade.
"This is a great place for us to do this," he said.
The Broadwing project is expected to create approximately 650 jobs during a four- to five-year construction period and 30 to 40 full-time jobs once operational.
Mangum said projects of this scale require open communication.
"Any time you're working on a project of this size and this significant for a community, you want to make sure you have some opportunity to engage with that community," he said.
For ADM leaders, the long-term goal extends beyond carbon storage itself.
"We want Decatur to be the hub of innovation for carbon," Carla said, pointing to opportunities ranging from advanced monitoring tools to new uses for captured CO2.
ADM leaders stress that many of the employees involved in the project live locally.
“You're going to see people from ADM that live in this community, that care about this community,” Kaloupek said. “We drink the water in Decatur. Our families live in Decatur. So it's personal for us.”
The company said it plans to continue hosting Learning Days throughout the year, including another event scheduled for March 26.
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