New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and U.S. Department of the Interior Tour Reclaimed Oil and Gas Well Plugging Sites

Funds Further Advance New York State's Ongoing Efforts to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Protect Ground and Surface Waters

Photos from TourAvailable Here

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) joined high-ranking officials from the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) on Sept. 11, 2024, during a field visit to seven orphaned and abandoned well sites across Western New York. The tour, which included meetings with associated landowners, assessed the condition of several orphaned wells and reclaimed sites and provided landowners the opportunity to describe their experiences to state and federal officials.

"New York State continues to identify and plug orphaned oil and gas wells littering our landscape to protect public safety and reduce the potent greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change," DEC Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said. "Support from the Biden Administration is bolstering DEC's work to plug orphaned gas and oil wells and reduce methane emissions and these sustained and critical investments are helping New York both achieve the State's ambitious climate goals while protecting ground and surface waters, public health, and safety."

"President Biden's Investing in America agenda is helping New York confront long-standing environmental injustices by plugging orphaned wells. DOI Senior Advisor and Infrastructure Coordinator Winnie Stachelberg said. "The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's $4.7 billion investment to plug orphaned wells is good for our climate, for the health of our communities, and for American workers."

The tour included field visits to four wells that were plugged during the initial $25 million round of funding made available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, as well as three additional orphaned wells that are candidates for future well plugging under the next round of federal funding - an additional $25 million in Formula Grant funding was awarded to New York State by the Interior Department earlier this summer. The funds, provided through the landmark federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), advance New York State's ongoing efforts to reduce climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions from aging and abandoned oil and gas infrastructure, and well as protect ground and surface waters.

New York State received $25 million in the first phase of the U.S. Department of the Interior's Formula Grants to plug high-priority wells that pose threats to the environment, public health, and public safety.

This funding will enable New York State to continue plugging high priority orphaned wells, building on New York's state-funded work (NY Works) and federal allocations, including the initial $25 million DOI award through the BIL, announced by Governor Hochul in 2022, and more than $8 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to plug marginal conventional oil and gas wells as part of its Methane Emissions Reduction Program.

Initial grant funding made available through the BIL enabled DEC to target and immediately plug high priority, and costly, wells. To date, DEC has plugged 30 high-priority orphaned natural gas wells using these funds, starting with last year's completion of a methane emitting well behind a strip plaza in the Erie County town of Holland. Of these 30 wells plugged over the last year, five were in Erie County, three were in Genesee County, one was in Oneida County, two were in Ontario County, one was in Schuyler County, 10 were in Steuben County, and eight were in Wyoming County.

Before being plugged, many of these wells leaked gas or other fluids like brine near sensitive areas, including homes and wetlands. The highest-emitting well leaked methane at more than 1,000 grams of methane per hour before it was plugged. Well plugging under the initial grant is expected to be completed next year.

Erie County landownerScott Pfeil said, "We have a parcel that has been in our family for three generations. There used to be an oil well that was abandoned decades ago. It was an eyesore for the parcel. With some funding from the federal government that was handed down to states, we were able to get this well removed through DEC who found a contractor who could remove the well and casing and remediate the surface of the ground so that we have a nice, usable parcel and not an antiquated, abandoned well that had the potential for methane gases or spewing gas or oil on the property. So, environmentally, it's wonderful, and for my family's future generations, we get to hand down a parcel that doesn't have this monstrosity, and we appreciate that."

Erie County landowners, Kevin and Penny Sears said, "When we bought our property, roughly four years ago, we discovered there was an orphaned well on the property. When we tried to investigate how to resolve the issue of the orphaned well, the drilling company told us it would cost nearly $46,000 just to investigate plugging the well, and it was going to be much more than that to plug the well. And, because of this, we didn't have to pay any of those investigating fees, or the plugging, or the seeding, or the dirt, or anything. Now, this is what we have today: A lawn again, instead of an orphaned gas well."

DEC, which administers the well-plugging program for the state, worked closely with New York State's Office of General Services (OGS) to expedite contracts to meet the appropriate grant award timelines for well plugging primarily in the state's Western, Central, and Northern regions. These regions were drilled for oil and gas starting in the 19th century before New York State's stringent regulatory programs existed and were often in remote locations.

New York State also remains eligible for an additional $19 million in DOI Formula Grants under Phase II. Applications for the second phase are due in December.

The BIL bolsters New York State's ongoing well-plugging investments and actions to reduce climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2013, DEC worked with property owners to plug more than 500 orphaned and abandoned wells across the state. DEC estimates that thousands of additional wells may continue emitting methane gas into the atmosphere and present risks to the environment.

Abandoned and orphaned wells need to be located and identified before they can be plugged. DEC staff use historic oil and gas documents like academic and industry publications and old lease maps to track down many orphaned wells, but discussions with landowners and long-time residents across the state are also invaluable.

New York State invites and encourages landowners to participate in New York State's well-plugging program. With the additional $25 million in federal BIL funds secured to complete well-plugging projects, DEC is interested in reaching interested landowners to participate in this voluntary program conducted using state and federal funding.

Landowners who suspect an orphaned well may be located on their property should review the information on DEC's website: Finding and Identifying Oil and Gas Wells. Landowners will also find contact information for DEC's regional offices to report the well for placement on DEC's well plugging priority list.

New York State's Nation-Leading Climate Plan
New York State's nation-leading climate agenda calls for an orderly and just transition that creates family-sustaining jobs, continues to foster a green economy across all sectors and ensures that at least 35 percent, with a goal of 40 percent, of the benefits of clean energy investments are directed to disadvantaged communities. Guided by some of the nation's most aggressive climate and clean energy initiatives, New York is on a path to achieving a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040, including 70 percent renewable energy generation by 2030, and economywide carbon neutrality by mid-century. A cornerstone of this transition is New York's unprecedented clean energy investments, including more than $35 billion in 120 large-scale renewable and transmission projects across the state, $6.8 billion to reduce building emissions, $3.3 billion to scale up solar, more than $1 billion for clean transportation initiatives, and over $2 billion in NY Green Bank commitments. These and other investments are supporting more than 165,000 jobs in New York's clean energy sector in 2021 and over 3,000 percent growth in the distributed solar sector since 2011. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality, New York also adopted zero-emission vehicle regulations, including requiring all new passenger cars and light-duty trucks sold in the State be zero emission by 2035. Partnerships are continuing to advance New York's climate action with nearly 400 registered and more than 100 certified Climate Smart Communities, nearly 500 Clean Energy Communities, and the State's largest community air monitoring initiative in 10 disadvantaged communities across the state to help target air pollution and combat climate change.

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