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Over the last few weeks, elected officials and congressional staffers visited two types of biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS) companies for facility tours and community events. While both of the companies have a unique approach to their work — these events showcased how BiCRS technology has the potential to create in-demand jobs, reduce wildfire risks, and provide improved methods to manage organic and agricultural waste.
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Hutchinson mayor Stacy Goss speaks at the event celebrating Vaulted Deep’s upgraded Kansas facility.
Biomass carbon removal in the United States
Biomass carbon removal and storage is one of the fastest growing methods of carbon removal work, and the community co-benefits are a key part of helping this technology scale. The process extends the short term carbon-removal ability of organic material, which absorbs carbon dioxide and eventually releases it back into the atmosphere. Durably storing excess organic material can reduce the severity of algae blooms and wildfires and reduce community exposure to harmful forever chemicals like PFAS.
Late last year, Carbon Removal Alliance worked with Senators Bennet and Murkowski to introduce the bipartisan Carbon Dioxide Removal Investment Act (CDRIA)opens in a new tab, which would right-size the current tax code to include biomass carbon removal technologies in tax incentives authorized by Congress. We are working to get this reintroduced soon because tax relief like this would help BiCRS companies hire additional workers and maximize their community benefits, like wildfire mitigation.
I saw this growing interest first-hand at two July events: a site tour at Charm Industrialopens in a new tab in Colorado, and a ribbon cutting at Vaulted Deepopens in a new tab in Kansas. Both companies are Alliance members, and they each have a specialized method of treating different types of biomass and storing it underground.
Charm Industrial site visit
Charm uses a process called pyrolysis to turn agricultural biomass (including corn stover or stalks, leaves, husks, and cobs) into a stable bio-oil. After that, they inject the bio-oil into EPA-regulated wells where it sinks and solidifies for permanent storage.
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Peter Reinhardt, Charm Industrial’s CEO and Co-Founder, explains their technology to the group.
In mid-July, we hosted a site visit for the Conservative Climate Foundationopens in a new tab, inviting supporters as well as elected officials and staff to see their facilities and learn more about BiCRS. The Conservative Climate Foundation is a nonprofit organization working with the Conservative Climate Caucus, which is chaired by Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA).
The event is part of CCF's Summer Field Tour, and it gave the group an inside look at Charm’s site in Fort Lupton, Colorado. Our Colorado fact sheetopens in a new tab talks about the full carbon removal landscape in Colorado, but a key factor that makes the state a great place for biomass carbon removal work is its tens of millions of acres of forest and agricultural land.
Our Senior Policy Manager, Eli Cain, gave an introduction to carbon removal, outlining the economic and strategic opportunities for carbon removal in the U.S. "America has the largest and most robust carbon removal industry in the world, and that's not an accident," he said. "It is the result of intentional, bipartisan federal policies and world class programs at our national labs and Department of Energy."
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Eli Cain, Carbon Removal Alliance’s Senior Policy Manager, explains how Charm Industrial’s work is critical to scaling carbon removal efforts across the United States.
Charm's CEO Peter Reinhardt then gave guests a tour of Charm's facility, which is responsible for biomass and bio-oil R&D, testing, and operations. He explained how Charm's process works and emphasized the critical role BiCRS can play in workforce development — highlighting Charm's work with local wildfire mitigation companies.
Finally, Charm held a panel hosted by Quinn Antus, Associate Director of Strategic Initiatives and Finance at the Colorado Energy Office. The panel included Laura Lammers, Founder and CEO of Travertineopens in a new tab; Nora Cohen Brown, head of market development and policy at Charm, and Doug Edwards, Head of Operations at Vestaopens in a new tab. Together, they covered how carbon removal companies are partnering with mining, agriculture, and wildfire mitigation industries, the economic potential that carbon removal represents, and the opportunity for U.S. leadership in carbon removal over the coming years.
Learn more about the site visit here.opens in a new tab
Vaulted Deep ribbon cutting
Vaulted Deep takes a different approach to biomass carbon removal and storage — collecting organic waste, like excess manure, agricultural byproducts, paper mill sludge, and biosolids, and storing it deep underground in stable geologic formations. In Kansas, the company is repurposing old salt caverns, which are naturally impermeable with high structural integrity. Vaulted’s primary function is waste management, and Vaulted also carefully tracks the carbon removed through its process, making them an attractive option for prospective buyers in the carbon market.
Vaulted hosted the July 15th event to mark the expansion of their Great Plains site, which will triple its waste intake capacity, drive more hiring, and grow work with local haulers. Since August 2023, Vaulted has added at least 22 new full-time jobs to the area. I attended the event alongside a number of community leaders, including Hutchinson Mayor Stacy Goss and Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Debra Teufel — both of whom spoke in support of the facility and praised the expansion for strengthening the county’s diverse economy.
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Reno County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Debra Teufel speaks to the crowd at the Vaulted Deep event. “We look forward to helping Vaulted Deep be a part of the Chamber family. Economic development is a team sport.”
Vaulted Co-Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor Omar Abou-Sayed thanked employees and workers for their commitment to the project. He noted that the current site is only about 5% full, and they are committed to utilizing the full storage capacity of the Great Plains site.
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Omar Abou-Sayed, Co-Founder and Senior Strategic Advisor of Vaulted Deep, explains how their technology stores carbon deep underground.
The ceremony was followed the next day by an open house, with free BBQ and activities for kids. Vaulted has actively fostered this type of community building in Hutchinson, with elected officials and residents alike.
At the Great Plains ribbon cutting, Vaulted Co-Founder and CEO Julia Reichelstein returned to the theme of community and collaboration. “This is an incredible example of working together,” she told the crowd. “You guys have welcomed us not as outsiders but as community members.”
Learn more about the ribbon cutting here.opens in a new tab
What's next
In the coming months, we’ll host additional site visits across the country, in North Carolina, New York, California, and Mississippi. There are new carbon removal projects turning on or expanding every month here in the U.S. — and bringing lawmakers out to see the impact carbon removal can have on their local economies is a core part of our work.
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