The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved on October 14 the Class VI injection well primary enforcement authority (primacy) application of the State of Colorado under Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) section 1422.
The EPA's approval of the State's Underground Injection Control (UIC) program primacy application will allow the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission (ECMC) to issue and enforce UIC Class VI permits for geologic carbon sequestration.
The EPA will remain the permitting authority for Class VI injection wells on Tribal lands within the State. With this action, the EPA also intends to codify previously approved, non-substantial changes to Colorado's UIC program for Class II injection wells.
To date, six states have primacy for UIC Class VI wells: North Dakota (2018), Wyoming (2020), Louisiana (2023), West Virginia (2025), Arizona (2025), and now Colorado (2026).
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