Interior Releases Draft Guidance for Grants for Vital Orphaned Well Cleanup Efforts

Washington, DC – The Department of the Interior released draft guidance today to states on how to apply for and distribute $500 million in formula grant funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to clean up oil and gas wells for which a financially sound owner can no longer be identified. The grants were implemented as an interim solution for states to recover from their massive well backlog and legacy pollution that oil and gas companies caused, not as a workaround for the industry to shirk responsibility. The initial block of grant funding was allocated to states in August 2022. 

Known as orphaned wells, these wells have been abandoned by the oil and gas industry, releasing toxic chemicals into the air and water, threatening the health of nearby communities, and emitting large amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas more than 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide.

In response, Sierra Club Beyond Dirty Fuels Director Patrick Grenter released the following statement: 

“Another round of grants will allow states to do the critical work of cleaning up orphaned oil and gas wells that have been devastating the environment and poisoning our communities and we’re glad to see this continued guidance from the administration to ensure that states are using these funds responsibly – not by funding companies that are the original instigators of this well backlog. This investment will not only address long overdue infrastructure and environmental improvements that will benefit our climate and public health, but it will also ensure that cleaning up these wells will create good-paying union jobs and economic growth. In order for these grants and guidance to be utilized to its full potential, states must step up and hold the industry accountable instead of leaving taxpayers to face the costs.”