Louisiana, home to 4,605 orphan oil and gas wells, plans to ask the federal government for an Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act grant to help pay the estimated $401.7 million cost of plugging them, reports NOLA.com.
It’s one of 26 states that told federal officials by the Dec. 30 deadline they want part of the $4.7 billion reserved in the law for plugging abandoned wells and restoring associated property. The effort is aimed at cleaning up environmental issues at the well sites and stopping the release of methane.
In requesting the states to apply for the money, the Biden administration said the plan was aimed at both its environmental benefits, especially for low- and moderate-income residents living nearby abandoned wells, and its expected economic benefits in an era of declining oil and gas service jobs. Read the entire story.
