Our mission is to fight climate change by plugging orphaned or abandoned oil and gas wells.
Why we do this work.
The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there are 2-3 million abandoned and unplugged oil and gas wells scattered throughout the United States. Because these wells are “abandoned,” they collectively leak an enormous amount of uncombusted methane directly into the atmosphere on a continuous basis. Conservative estimates are that abandoned oil and gas wells emit 7-8 million metric tons of CO2e (“carbon dioxide equivalent”) gas into the atmosphere every year. Many of these abandoned wells have been leaking methane for decades. Unless they are plugged, they will continue to emit methane into the atmosphere for years to come.
Methane has more than 80x the warming power of CO2 over the first 20 years after it enters the atmosphere. Although CO2 has a longer lasting warming effect, methane accelerates and sets the pace for global warming in the near term. Given the limited amount of time we have to address the worst effects of climate change, reducing methane emissions quickly is critical to addressing the near-term effects of climate change.
Emissions from these abandoned wells also create serious health and safety issues for populations that live near them. Breathing methane and other volatile compounds that are emitted by these wells can cause cancer, cardiovascular, neurological, and respiratory problems. Many of these methane emitting wells also leak oil and brine, which contaminate drinking water, groundwater, rivers, streams, and wetlands.
The Well Done Foundation works hand-in-hand with farmers and landowners, local and state governments, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations to locate abandoned wells, measure and document the methane emissions, then plug the wells and restore the surrounding surface areas to their original state.
How we do the work.
Former oil industry executive Curtis Shuck’s vision for the Well Done Foundation came during the summer of 2019 after visiting a legacy oilfield in Northern Montana where he saw firsthand the harmful impact orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells had on communities and the environment. The Well Done Foundation was formed as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and we take a collaborative approach to addressing the problem of abandoned and orphaned oil and gas wells. Even with the recent commitment of funds by the Biden administration to plug orphaned and abandoned wells, there is not nearly enough money allocated at the state or federal level to plug these abandoned wells. Costs to plug an orphaned or abandoned well range from $35,000 at the lowend to $250,000 on the high-end. The Well Done Foundation works with state regulators, landowners, foundations, philanthropists, and private businesses to fund plugging and then plug these abandoned wells. Plugging the wells brings an immediate and complete halt to the methane emissions and stops further leaking of oil and brine onto the ground and into rivers and streams.
We work with local companies and contractors to plug abandoned wells and restore the landscape around the wells. Plugging abandoned oil and gas wells provides well paid jobs for workers who are currently employed in the oil and gas industry. It’s our view that proceeding with and funding plugging work, and scaling that work up around the country, will help with a “just transition” for oil field workers as we pivot toward an economy powered by renewable forms of energy rather than fossil fuels.
Where we are working.
What started as a pilot project in Northern Montana has moved into legacy oil states such as Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Ohio, and we are also currently identifying and monitoring wells in West Virginia, Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Washington, and California. The Well Done Foundation can’t plug 2-3 million orphaned wells by itself, but our goal is to plug as many of these wells as we can, one well at a time, and by doing this work, we aim to establish plugging and business methodologies and protocols for how the work can and should be done at scale across the country. We are working with and talking to regulators and policy makers to create and influence policy at the state and federal levels to help establish policies that efficiently direct money to the right places so this critical work can get done. And, we are working with foundations, philanthropists, environmentalists, and landowners to identify leaking wells, and to secure sponsorships and funding to plug these wells.
The Well Done Foundation is also committed to plugging methane leaking wells in vulnerable communities. By way of example, in 2022, we plugged an orphaned well in downtown Cleveland, Ohio that was actually surrounded by a Section 8 senior housing apartment complex. Just this past month, we plugged a methane leaking orphaned well located in a mobile home park in Erie County, PA.
Impact of our work thus far.
Since 2019, the Well Done Foundation, with the support of donors and corporate sponsors, has plugged 25 orphaned oil and gas wells in six states (and counting), permanently reducing harmful methane gas emissions (80x more harmful than carbon dioxide) by more than 500,000 metric tons of CO2e. We have also met with regulators and policy makers in numerous states and helped inform and educate them about the real problem with orphaned and abandoned wells. Through our website, our work, and the media attention we have generated, we have brought attention to this issue and generated support from industry and community groups to solve it together.
What’s next.
Working with the American Carbon Registry, the WDF is sponsoring the first-of-its-kind “carbon methodology” for orphaned and abandoned oil and gas well plugging. This finance tool will bring much needed financing from the private sector that can be used to plug more wells.
In New Mexico, the WDF is currently working in partnership with local plugging partners to measure methane point source emissions from more than 70 of the state’s orphaned oil and gas wells. This effort has allowed regulators at the State of New Mexico’s Oil Conservation Division (OCD) to prioritize the worst methane-emitting orphan wells in the state, which subsequently led to the completion of the agency’s first project in Lea County, using Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) federal funding.
We hope to continue bringing attention to this issue by speaking with policy makers, community and industry groups, and young people interested in helping fight climate change. Our measuring and monitoring technology and protocol will help regulators in states spend dollars designated for well plugging more efficiently. And, as we help develop the protocol for a carbon credit tied to methane emissions prevented by plugging wells, we will attact much-needed capital from the private sector that can then be deployed to plug additional wells.
FAQ: welldonefoundation.org/faq
WDF Projects: welldonefoundation.org/projects
WDF Media Coverage: welldonefoundation.org/news
Carbon Offsets: welldonefoundation.org/purchase-carbon-offsets
Donations: welldonefoundation.org/donate-to-wdf
Landowner Assistance: welldonefoundation.org/landowners
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