The united states fish and wildlife service (USFWS) and the well done foundation (WDF) seek to restore and conserve habitat by plugging, abandoning, and reclaiming 111 orphaned well sites on at…

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) awarded a $19,271,409.80 Cooperative Agreement under the National Wildlife Refuge System Enhancements program (CFDA 15.654) to Well Done New Mexico LLC. The purpose of the award is to restore and conserve habitat by plugging, abandoning, and reclaiming 111 orphaned oil and gas well sites on at least 5 National Wildlife Refuges. The project aims to adhere to state and federal regulatory requirements for oil and gas operations while meeting conservation needs identified within the Cooperative Agreement. Orphaned wells on refuge lands pose safety and environmental risks, including hazards to natural resources, contamination of surface or groundwater, and loss of habitat. This Cooperative Agreement seeks to address these issues by properly plugging and abandoning the orphaned wells and reclaiming the associated disturbed areas. The award has a period of performance from December 20, 2024 to December 19, 2029.

The united states fish and wildlife service (USFWS) and the well done foundation (WDF) seek to restore and conserve habitat by plugging, abandoning, and reclaiming 111 orphaned well sites on at least 5 national wildlife refuges in a manner that adheres to state and federal regulatory requirements for oil and gas operations and meets conservation needs identified within the cooperative agreement. The USFWS and WDF have the compatible goal of ensuring that orphaned oil and gas wells on refuge lands are properly plugged and abandoned and that associated disturbed areas are reclaimed. Orphaned oil and gas wells and sites located on wildlife refuges pose safety threats and environmental risks. Threats include increased hazards to natural resources, resource damage from release of petroleum products due to missing or deteriorating pressure control equipment, contamination of surface or groundwater absent proper well plugging, personal injury and property damage from release of pressurized and highly flammable well fluids, migration of contaminates from buried pits, and loss of habitat from said contamination and surface disturbances. These risks increase with time, as does the cost of addressing them.