AP: Gulf awash in 27,000 abandoned gas, oil wells

AP: Gulf awash in 27,000 abandoned gas, oil wells

content.usatoday.com

More than 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells remain in the Gulf of Mexico and no one's checking to see if they are leaking, reports an investigation by the Associated Press.
The AP, calling the Gulf an "environmental minefield," says the oldest of these wells were abandoned in the late 1940s, raising questions about whether their seals remain intact. It says 3,500 wells are listed as "temporarily abandoned," without seals, with 1,000 of them remaining that way for more than a decade.

(visit the link for the full news article)

How could we possibly ignored this for this long? Tribute to the writer for sharing the horrific truth. If this wa just an incident with one well, how many others are awaiting? Specifically those that have been "abbandoned and plugged"? We obviously need to keep a very close eye on the oil industry in the future and the steps they have taken to try to keep us safe. If they are only after their bottom line, I as a conservative, will be the first in line to string them up. I will not sit by and watch this happen.

content.usatoday.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Unbelievable...how is this for corporate negligence?

Is there a list of companies associated with this abandonment?

reply to post by MemoryShock


I personally promise to do the research, and come up with an actual list. This to me is the most unbelievable thing I have ever heard. It is up to every one of us at this point to pay very close attention to this industry. WHY WASN'T THIS REPORTED MONTHS AGO?

Originally posted by dreamwalker74
WHY WASN'T THIS REPORTED MONTHS AGO?

Corporate information is proprietary and mostly untouchable under national and international law...tis why we know nothing about this.

Great Find and I look forward to your compilation...

Wouldn't that just be the nail in the coffin to find out that more seals are now leaking than have been reported on because they remained 'unchecked'. The irresponsibility and unpreparedness within the oil industry has been remarkably foolish and absurd. I do hope there is no further leaks for everyones sake.

Wow,just wow,27 thousand of em.
The Gulf floor/seabed must be like holy like swiss cheese by now,no wonder theres cracks on the seabed.
It must cost too much to remove them and seal them?Looking forward to what you find out.

Originally posted by iceblue20-12
It must cost too much to remove them and seal them?

When you consider the legislation preventing people from placing waste in the ocean I don't care the cost...this is inexcusable...

What really irks me is that most if not all of the companies won't be held responsible...makes me livid...

I read this article earlier and was astonished. Then i got to thinking about it. We are dooming ourselves every time a new drill head breaks ground under water. These wells dont produce forever, that is a fact. What happens in a couple hundred years when these plugs decay and collapse under the pressure of new oil forming in the caverns where oil was prevoiusly taken out? Ill tell you what happens: Thousands of wells spewing oil at the same time. And where around the world does underwater drilling occur? EXACTLY. Our greed and need for an abundant power source will be our downfall one day. Parhaps its time to wake up and smell the wind turbines.

MessOnTheFED!

take note

u will see this info again in a court of law
as BP will use this as a scapegoat to get
out of paying all that is owed on the devastation
from this disaster.

To give you some idea, if this is accurate:

If the Gulf of Mexico is in fact 810 miles long, and 300 miles wide. that would make the Gulf 243,000 square miles. If there are in fact 27,000 abandoned wells, that would put on average, one abanoned well every 9 square miles in the Gulf, or in otherwords, for every 3 by 3 mile section of the entire Gulf There is at least one abandoned well, plugged or not.

reply to post by MemoryShock


The article only mentions BP as having 600 abandoned wells in the Gulf. I suspect many were drilled by now defunct companies, or companies that were merged with other companies leaving the fate of the wells in limbo.

Many wells, onshore and offshore are abandoned either permanently due to reduced output, or temporarily due to weather, drilling schedules etc...

The current leak site was in the works of becoming a temporarily abandoned site when the rig exploded.

I think the biggest alarm should be in the many temporarily abandoned wells that have in turn be left abandoned for 10-40 years. The procedure, and regulations for sealing a temporary well are not the same standard as a permanent seal, and these are more likely to develop leaks.

The article mentions how many wells can and do repressurize. That can be potentially catastrophic considering that they don't have the same standards as permanent seals, and especially when they have been neglected for decades.

reply to post by ThaLoccster


Therefore the abandoned wells, with no current owner, automatically come under the jusrisdiction of the federal government, specifically the EPA, I reccomend we advise them to "get on it".

Originally posted by dreamwalker74
reply to post by ThaLoccster

 

Therefore the abandoned wells, with no current owner, automatically come under the jusrisdiction of the federal government, specifically the EPA, I reccomend we advise them to "get on it".

Source?

I've read numerous places that the only government agency with any power in open water is th eCoast Guard, not the EPA.

in fact, it would appear only those darn beuracrats in claifornia have the right legal network to do that kind of job.

Offshore, but in state waters, California has resealed scores of its abandoned wells since the 1980s. In deeper federal waters, though — despite the similarities in how such wells are constructed and how sealing procedures can fail — the official policy is out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

The U.S. Minerals Management Service — the regulatory agency recently renamed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement — relies on rules that have few real teeth. Once an oil company says it will permanently abandon a well, it has one year to complete the job. MMS mandates that work plans be submitted and a report filed afterward. Unlike California regulators, MMS doesn't typically inspect the job, instead relying on the paperwork.

rawstory.com...

[edit on 7-7-2010 by justadood]

I can't believe that some of these temporary caps have been on these wells for over 50 years. This is crazy. How is this the first time we are hearing of this. The human race as a whole is DOOMED!!

Damn, do ANY of you know what you're talking about???? If a well is a dry hole(meaning no oil) you abandon it. If it has oil (or gas) you let it produce till there is no more! No company abandons a producing oil or gas well. Average price for drilling is over 10,000/ft to drill a well. Some people don't think past their ears anymore!!

Zindo

reply to post by justadood


Are you telling me that the U.S. Government has no legal authority in the Gulf of Mexico, because Mexico shares the Gulf, and we consider this "open waters"? Wow did we stop short in the Mexican American War! Seriously, who if our government took a proactive roll regarding these wells, would stop us from doing so? Would Mexico say, "No, part of those abandoned wells fall in our jurisdiction, and you have no right to make sure they are safe and will not poison our populace?" We have come to the point in this incident that we need to "get real". Forget the fact that we don't own the "whole" Gulf, we need to take care of it. Now.

Another potential cause of HUGE oil leaks is sunken ships / planes / subs from the second world. NOt very often discussed or even realised, however the estimated time it will take for these to rust and release their cargo is around 60 years - in other we are due to start seeing massive oil spills from these stored supplies round about now.

Here are lots more sources...


oils.gpa.unep.org...

reply to post by ZindoDoone


I'm not sure how much experience you have with wells. But oil wells are much like water wells. If you run too much water out of a well, yes it eventually runs out, but because of the porous shell of the Earth, these wells, most of the time do refill. The same basis is true with oil, it is just a matter of time. Many of these wells are capped, many are not. The ones that are "capped", how old are the caps? 40, 50, 90 years? Either you are missing the point completely, or you are working for the oil industry or a foreign country. Regardless of which one, your training department needs to add a couple chapters to their training manual. Chapter 1. Research data before spreading misinformation. 2. If blogging, choose an avatar that won't make people automatically suspect your post.

Maybe this explains the Gulf "Dead Zone" area. If I were an investigator I might start in that area.