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orphaned wells

Plugging Away at the Millions of Derelict Oil and Gas Wells in the US

The Well Done Foundation is remediating abandoned and orphaned fossil fuel wells that pollute water, soils and the atmosphere. But plugging a borehole can be even harder than drilling it.

Story and photos by J. Matt

 A crew works to plug an orphaned well in the Deep Fork National Wildlife Refuge of Oklahoma.
Employees of Bulldog Field Services work on plugging an orphan well for the Railroad Commission of Texas in Luling on March 27. Credit: Elizabeth Conley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images

Texas Legislature Increases Well Plugging Budget as Backlog Grows

By Martha Pskowski
Workers cap an orphaned well near Oil City, La. on March 8, 2023. Credit: Cooper Neill for The Washington Post via Getty Images

Scientists Map Where Orphan Wells Pose Threats to Aquifers

By Martha Pskowski
Contractors and attorneys for Chevron watch from above as Hawk Dunlap, Daniel Charest and Sarah Stogner (from left) inspect an excavated well on April 10 at Antina Ranch in Crane County, Texas. Credit: Mitch Borden/Marfa Public Radio

A Legal Fight Over Legacy Oil Industry Pollution Heats Up in West Texas

By Martha Pskowski
Oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner visits Lake Boehmer in Pecos County where abandoned wells have brought produced water to the surface for decades. The Railroad Commission considers these water wells and therefore not under their jurisdiction. Credit: Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News

Oil and Gas Companies Spill Millions of Gallons of Wastewater in Texas

By Martha Pskowski, Peter Aldhous
An orphan oil well, for which no one is taking legal or financial responsibility, sits abandoned in Kern County outside of Bakersfield, California on Tuesday, April 6, 2020. Credit: David Walter Banks for The Washington Post via Getty Images

Carbon Credit Market Seizes On a New Opportunity: Plugging Oil and Gas Wells

By Keaton Peters

North Dakota, Using Taxpayer Funds, Bailed Out Oil and Gas Companies by Plugging Abandoned Wells

By Nicholas Kusnetz

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