All those formations of porous rock deep under Michigan that once held oil and natural gas may soon be used to store carbon dioxide, limiting its ability to damage the environment.

The Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership plans a press conference Thursday, Feb. 21 at 1:30 p.m. to announce the start of carbon dioxide injection at a test site near Gaylord. 

This test project is part of a nationwide effort led by the federal Department of Energy to conduct demonstrations of technologies that could be used to store carbon dioxide in deep underground formations to prevent the gas -- which is associated with global warming -- from entering the atmosphere.

The press conference will take place at Treetops Sylvan Resort, 3962 Wilkinson Road in Gaylord.

Attending will be representatives from the DoE's National Energy Technology Laboratory and key partnership organizations including Battelle, Core Energy LLC, DTE Energy and the Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education at Western Michigan University.