Supporting Those Who Support Corn

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hosted a public hearing for Marquis Carbon Injection LLC to inject and store carbon dioxide underground at an injection well in Putnam County, Illinois.

Marquis uses, on average, over 360,000 bushels of corn every day, making a large economic impact for Illinois corn farmers. The carbon sequestration well will allow them to expand corn markets, grow ethanol production, increase on-farm conservation, and reduce carbon. In Illinois, 25% of corn is used for ethanol production, generating $4.4 billion in value of ethanol and distillers grains production.

IL Corn Growers Association (ICGA) board members attended the hearing to voice their support for the injection well.

“As a farmer in the area, I support this carbon storage project because it will hopefully help Marquis expand and pursue low-carbon fuel markets. About a quarter of our grain here in Illinois goes into the production of ethanol, and I see this project as technology that will help the industry continue to evolve and provide a good market for our corn,” Bill Leigh, a farmer from Minonk.

New markets for ethanol, like the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) opportunity, will not take off without ethanol plants sequestering carbon. The lower-scoring carbon intensity produced at plants like Marquis, if approved, will enable both domestic and international growth in the corn industry. This progress would boost farmer profitability and drive further investment in rural communities.

Read IL Corn Growers Association’s comments to the EPA docket in support of the Marquis sequestration project.

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