Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. (CEC) is at the forefront of plugging abandoned, orphaned wells in fields, forests, and meadows across the country.
History and Environmental Impact of Orphan Wells
Throughout the early 20th century and prior to regulations requiring plugging a well after it was no longer producing, many companies simply packed up and left. After the wells were no longer profitable or stopped producing, the derricks and other equipment were left behind to rust in place. The wells are unsightly and often leak methane or other contaminants into streams. In some instances, an orphaned well may just be an open hole in the ground with no other evidence that a well exists.
Many of these companies have since gone out of business or remain unknown years after abandoning these well sites, leaving no recourse for legal action to require the wells to be properly plugged. They are termed orphan wells.
The wells were left open and, in many cases, leaking methane, oil, brine or other oil/gas-related constituents into the air and ground.
An estimated 125,000 to 750,000 orphaned wells (dependent on the source) exist across the United States. Wells are occasionally found near streams or unsightly and some wells are nearly impossible to find at the surface without the use of a drone and magnetometer. A large percentage of orphaned wells can be found in the northeastern United States, but orphaned wells exist in roughly half of the states.
CEC’s Role in Orphan Well Remediation
That’s where CEC comes in, says Justin Wagner, P.E., a Principal in Pittsburgh’s civil engineering practice.
CEC leads the charge in working at cleaning up well sites in Ohio, through a contract with the state, utilizing funds from the federal Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act (IIJA).
“Ohio is one of the few states to directly contract with the consultants. CEC is one of only three contracted consultants in the state doing this type of work.”
In Pennsylvania, these federal funds previously were disbursed by the Department of Environmental Protection, through the Legacy Oil and Gas Group. The state now has a separate contract for consultants, modeled after the Ohio program, which is expected to be released soon, Wagner says.
IIJA funds have already made an impact in Pennsylvania, with the program expected to last 7-10 years. Key factors of the IIJA:
- Phase 1 – Initial Grant released – $25 million.
- Phase 2 – Formula Grants $2 billion, with a projected +-$400 million over the PA, plus approximately $76 million for each of the next 4 years.
- Phase 3 – Performance Grants release of funds in 4 years – $1.5 billion.
CEC’s Comprehensive Services for Well Plugging Projects
CEC handles civil design, CQA of the site work, plugging plans, ecological services, surveying, and permitting at each of the well sites. “We get a list of locations and then make the plan with the contractors. We’ve done 100-150 locations over the past two years, facing some challenging terrain with limited or difficult access into the location, often over a ½ mile from the nearest road and land access issues with landowners who don’t want to see their properties altered,” Wagner says.
Wagner says the well plugging in Ohio and Pennsylvania is currently being done at no cost to the landowners.
As the opportunities across the country for this service continue, CEC has an experienced team ready to answer the call. “We are working hard to make sure to be in front of the process,” he concludes.
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