Finding Abandoned Oil & Gas Wells

There are about 30,000 orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells confirmed in Pennsylvania. Evidence suggests there really are between 350,000 and 750,000 wells. In the vast majority of cases, landowners are not responsible for these wells - even if they received royalties or free gas.

Most landowners in conventional oil and gas territories are accustomed to seeing old well heads, pump jacks, and oil and gas infrastructure in fields and woods. Landowners should consider that these rusting relics are not getting any better and may lead to bigger problems in the future.

Dan Brockett, leader of the Penn State Extension Energy team, will discuss some of the problems with these aging wells and steps landowners can take to mitigate these problems. Penn State Extension along with EDP and the Oil Region Alliance is offering landowners assistance in getting these wells recorded and will give landowners $100 for each undocumented well that they identify on their properties.

Dan will tell us how to identify these orphaned wells and claim our $100 on Tuesday, August 19, 7:00 PM, at the Scrubgrass Grange. Scrubgrass Grange is located at 5104 Emlenton-Clintonville Rd., Emlenton, PA 16373. We hope you come join us.