Worker safety in a mature carbon capture and storage industry in the United States based upon analog industry experience

Abstract

TitleWorker safety in a mature carbon capture and storage industry in the United States based upon analog industry experience Insight into worker safety in a mature carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry in the United States (US) can be gained by analogy to a variety of existing industries. Worker safety in capture facility construction will be below median, as is typical for construction. Worker safety in capture operation will be above median based on the oil refining, fossil fuel electric power generation, and industrial gas processing analogs. Pipeline construction and operation worker injury rates will be below median based on analogy with oil and gas pipeline construction and operation; however construction will have the unfortunately typical high fatality rate. Storage field worker safety will be mixed with below median injury rates but high fatality rates based on the oil and gas production analog. Still, safety in the oil and gas production analog is better than in the heavy and civil engineering construction industry and much better than in some other common industries, such as marine and truck transportation. CCS worker safety will be greater than the analogs due to the lack of flammable fluid handling, extremely high or low temperatures, product transportation by truck, and relatively less drilling effort, more geophysics effort, and more onshore work. Many of these differences also suggest CCS will be safer for the public than the analogs.