On March 1, Sens. Ken Salazar (D-CO), Jim Webb (D-VA), Jon Tester (D-MT), Jim Bunning (R-KY) and Jeff Bingaman introduced the National Carbon Dioxide Storage Capacity Assessment Act of 2007 (S. 731) that would mandate a U.S. inventory on the potential for underground storage of greenhouse gas. A companion bill (H.R. 1267) was introduced by House Science Committee Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN). Scientists and regulators need to prove carbon sequestration technology can be implemented "safely and effectively," Salazar said. "We must know that the scientific data is uniform and reliable for our nation to be able to use it with confidence."
Both bills instruct the U.S. Geologic Survey, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the EPA with calculating storage capacity in all 50 states, as well as estimate potential volumes of oil and gas that could be recovered after carbon injections. Federal agencies also would determine the risk tied to carbon sequestration.