** Major infrastructure bill could help clean up abandoned wells and mines
------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
Orphaned well | U.S. Government Accountability Office ([link removed])
After more than a century of extraction, tens of thousands of abandoned mines and orphaned oil wells dot the Western landscape. The work to clean up those often toxic sites is expensive and time consuming, leading to a years-long backlog. Now, the bipartisan infrastructure bill that may be passed by Congress next month offers hope—and much-needed funding—to accelerate the plugging of orphaned wells and clean up abandoned mines.
Colorado Public Radio's Caitlyn Kim highlights the potential impact on Colorado ([link removed]) , where there are more than 750 orphaned oil and gas sites—wells whose owners have gone bankrupt or no longer operate in the state, leaving taxpayers on the hook for cleanup. "I'm angry and frustrated,” said ([link removed]) Adams County Commissioner Emma Pinter of the situation. “I feel like the analogy that keeps coming to mind is you go out to lunch with a couple of friends and you know you're going to have to pay the bill eventually. (But) as you look around, two or three of your friends have slipped out the back. And the rest of you are picking up the bill."
In total, the infrastructure bill includes more than $4.5 billion to plug and remediate abandoned oil and gas wells, and some $14 billion to clean up abandoned mines.
While this funding is critical to address the growing problem of orphaned wells, it is only a first step towards broader reform. One needed change is increasing the bonding amounts companies must pay to drill wells, bonds that are supposed to ensure taxpayers can cover the cost of cleanup should the company go bankrupt. "In the past, a well would only require a $5,000 bond,” explained ([link removed]) Adams County oil and gas liaison. “So, (a company) would have to submit a $5,000 bond to the state to drill these wells. (But) we know that the cost of plugging an abandoned well is $85,000.”
In Congress, Senator Michael Bennet from Colorado has introduced legislation ([link removed]) to increase bonding amounts and reform oil and gas leases to decrease the likelihood that wells become orphaned. Just last week the House Natural Resources Committee included many of those provisions ([link removed]) in its portion of the massive budget reconciliation bill that is being debated alongside the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Combined, the two pieces of legislation offer hope to governments and communities around the West that orphaned wells and abandoned mines may soon be cleaned up at a faster pace.
Quick hits
** Where's the Interior Department? A round up of the Biden administration's inaction on monuments, drilling
------------------------------------------------------------
The Land Desk ([link removed])
** Runners for Public Lands fosters connections between runners and the lands they run on
------------------------------------------------------------
Runners World ([link removed])
** Biden tours wildfire damage in California, Idaho
------------------------------------------------------------
New York Times ([link removed]) | NPR ([link removed])
** As major climate provisions inch forward in Congress, lobbying frenzy ensues
------------------------------------------------------------
Washington Post ([link removed])
** Hopi farmer works to sustain corn growing traditions in the face of changing climate
------------------------------------------------------------
Arizona Republic ([link removed])
** Wildlife managers say Colorado River fish are back from the brink of extinction, but may always need human help
------------------------------------------------------------
Arizona Republic ([link removed])
** Wyoming sage-grouse counts fall again, marking 5-year trend
------------------------------------------------------------
WyoFile ([link removed])
** BLM proposes management changes for Bear Ears site where visitation has quadrupled since 2015
------------------------------------------------------------
KSL ([link removed])
Quote of the day
In the eight months since, Biden has continued to talk big on climate, but his actions have been baffling to many observers. Keystone’s still dead, but the administration has defended the equally contentious Dakota Access Pipeline. Biden’s holding the line on ANWR drilling, and recently launched a review of the leasing program there, but he also has supported Trump’s approval of the Willow drilling project ([link removed]) on Alaska’s North Slope; a judge struck that approval down last month ([link removed]) . Biden’s Interior Department just announced it would review the outdated federal coal leasing program, even as it reduced royalties for coal companies that are currently raking in a profit ([link removed]) .”
—Jonathan Thompson, The Land Desk ([link removed])
Picture this
** @BLMUtah ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
The BLM is grateful to the climbing community for their efforts to avoid raptor nesting sites in the Indian Creek corridor during the spring. Climbers can now use these walls and are no longer asked to avoid these areas. Learn more: [link removed] ([link removed])
============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Medium ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
Copyright © 2021 Center for Western Priorities, All rights reserved.
You've signed up to receive Look West updates.
Center for Western Priorities
1999 Broadway
Suite 520
Denver, CO 80202
USA
** View this on the web ([link removed])
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
