US Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to invest $76 million closing legacy oil & gas wells in Pennsylvania

Old oil and gas wells leak harmful gases if not properly sealed. This has toxic effects on the environment and human health and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, causing global warming and worsening severe weather events.

Conversely, sealing old gas wells makes things safer, cleaner, and more pleasant. Yay!

The Department of the Interior today announced $76.4 million from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda for Pennsylvania to clean up orphaned oil and gas wells. The Commonwealth expects to be able to plug approximately 550 orphaned oil and gas wells over the next five years thanks to this historic funding. These investments to address hazardous sites will help create good-paying union jobs, catalyze economic growth and revitalization, and reduce environmental and public health impacts from harmful methane leaks.

Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Department is delivering the largest investment in tackling legacy pollution in American history, including $4.7 billion to plug orphaned wells [nationwide]. This includes grants to states in three categories: initial grants, formula grants, and performance grants. Since August 2022, the Department has awarded $565 million in initial grant funding to 25 states, including $25 million to Pennsylvania, to begin work plugging and cleaning up orphaned wells nationwide.

Plugging is underway across the country. In fact, since the enactment of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law -- states have already plugged more than 8,200 orphaned wells, including over 200 in Pennsylvania. Nationwide, investments through the Department’s Orphaned Wells Program Office are estimated to have supported over 7,200 jobs and contributed more than $900 million to the economy over the last two fiscal years. 

Orphaned oil and gas wells are polluting backyards, recreation areas, and community spaces across the country. Many of these wells pose serious health and safety threats to air and water quality by contaminating surface and groundwater, releasing toxic air pollutants, polluting drinking water sources, and leaking methane – a “super pollutant” that is a significant cause of climate change and many times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. Plugging orphaned wells supports broader Biden-Harris administration efforts under the U.S. Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan.

The usual self-congratulatory press release language. But this is nice.

The election of Democratic presidential candidate Joseph R. Biden Jr. in 2020 and the election of a House and Senate majority enabled this funding to improve public health and safety, reduce harm to the environment, and prevent areas all around Pennsylvania from becoming blighted.

Electing more candidates interested in real environmental policy is necessary to continue improving public health. This funding would definitely not have been allocated had the Republican presidential candidate been elected in 2020. In this election cycle, in 2024, I suggest voting for people who want to fix the mistakes of the past, reduce carbon emissions, and improve the quality of groundwater.

It is extremely important to elect candidates on the local and state levels who are interested in real climate policy, too. The president is an important role, as are Senate and House candidates, but a lot of this work happens closer to home.

Don't vote based on vibes. Vote based on stated policy and proven track record.

I hate living in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania during election years. But I don't mind the targeted federal funding for this kind of thing. :P