North Dakota Judge Strikes Down Law Used for Carbon Storage Projects

Court Says Landowners Cannot Be Forced Into Carbon Storage Sites

BISMARCK, N.D. — A North Dakota district court has ruled that a state law allowing landowners to be compelled to participate in carbon sequestration projects is unconstitutional, delivering a significant setback to Summit Carbon Solutions and its planned carbon pipeline project.

The decision, issued March 9, 2026, found that the state’s 2009 “amalgamation” law violates constitutional protections for property owners. The law required landowners to participate in carbon dioxide storage projects if at least 60% of affected landowners agreed to the proposal.

The case was brought by a group of western North Dakota landowners whose property was included in a proposed carbon sequestration site connected to Summit Carbon Solutions’ pipeline project.

Judge Finds Property Rights Violated

Justice Jackson Lofgren ruled that the law conflicts with constitutional protections governing eminent domain. The constitution requires that property owners have the right to have compensation determined by a jury and that payment must occur before property is taken.

The judge said the amalgamation law failed to meet those requirements.

Because the law was ruled unconstitutional, permits allowing Summit Carbon Solutions to store carbon dioxide in underground “pore space” beneath private land near Beulah are no longer valid, according to the ruling.

The proposed sequestration site covers about 100,000 acres and includes three separate storage areas, each with its own test well.

Landowners Challenged Forced Participation

The lawsuit was filed by landowners who said they were being required to participate in the carbon storage project against their will.

Kurt Swenson, one of the landowners involved in the case, said his property lies within the proposed sequestration area.

“When Summit applied for the permits, we applied to be a party to those proceedings and we were treated poorly by the Industrial Commission,” Swenson said.

Swenson also warned that other carbon sequestration sites built under the same law could face uncertainty following the ruling.

Earlier Court Decision Reached Similar Conclusion

The March ruling follows another decision issued in December 2025 by Northeast Judicial District Judge Anthony Swain Benson. That case was filed by the Northwest Landowners Association and also found the amalgamation law unconstitutional.

The two rulings raise questions about the legal framework used to approve carbon storage projects in the state.

Pipeline Project Spans Multiple States

Summit Carbon Solutions plans to build a carbon dioxide pipeline stretching across Iowa, Nebraska, eastern South Dakota, Minnesota and North Dakota. The system would capture carbon dioxide emissions from ethanol plants and transport them to a storage site near Beulah.

The company would receive federal tax credits of $85 per ton for sequestered carbon.

Supporters of the project, including some ethanol industry representatives, say the pipeline could increase the value of ethanol by allowing producers to market it as a more environmentally friendly fuel.

Permitting Process Still Ongoing

Summit has already obtained permits in North Dakota and Minnesota. However, an Iowa permit is tied to approvals in other states.

South Dakota has also slowed the project by passing laws that protect landowners from carbon dioxide pipelines seeking to use eminent domain.

The court ruling now creates additional legal challenges for the project and could affect other sequestration efforts that relied on the same state law.