Is Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) Racist?

Environmental justice (EJ) communities are on the frontlines of the adverse impacts of climate change and are disproportionately exposed to a wide range of polluting industries, including fossil fuel infrastructure like coal plants, natural gas plants, and pipelines. Will the use of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) mechanisms and hydrogen co-firing in the power sector will further harm EJ communities that are already overburdened? According to Dr. Nicky Sheats John S. Watson Institute for Urban Policy and Research at Kean University, “EPA’s proposed rule all but recognizes that CCS and hydrogen co-firing will add to toxic air pollution in communities living near power plants, and this is unacceptable when such communities already live with an unfair share of cumulative impacts from pollution.” Tune in as we examine the ramifications of allowing CCS and hydrogen co-firing for America’s most vulnerable populations.