A South Dakota Circuit Court previously ruled in favor of Summit Carbon Solutions, allowing eminent domain to facilitate construction of a CO2 pipeline.  Landowners appealed and the South Dakota Supreme Court unanimously reversed the lower court decision.  To be eligible, Summit would have had to demonstrate that it was a common carrier transporting a commodity.  Since the CO2 to be transported through the proposed pipeline was intended for disposal by sequestration, the Supreme Court of South Dakota reversed the decision of the Circuit Court denying Summit common carrier status.

If the pipeline transiting South Dakota and four other states linking 57 ethanol plants to a North Dakota disposal site is to become a reality, Summit Carbon Solutions will have to justify its status as a common carrier and provide additional documentation to receive approval from the Public Utility Commission to proceed with construction.

Legal wrangles involving setbacks and property rights relating to pipelines point to the reality that carbon dioxide generated by the fermentation of corn to produce ethanol is in large measure vented to the atmosphere. This represents a large volume of greenhouse gas release that in large measure, offsets the claimed advantages by the ethanol industry for sustainability and enhancement of the environment.