States ask Trump administration to pay laid off oil workers to plug abandoned wells

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

BUSINESS NEWS MAY 6, 2020 / 12:43 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

States ask Trump administration to pay laid off oil workers to plug abandoned wells

Nichola Groom
3 MIN READ

(Reuters) - A coalition of U.S. oil producing states has asked the Trump administration for stimulus funds to hire laid off energy workers to plug abandoned wells, a proposal aimed at fending off unemployment while tackling a growing environmental problem, a spokeswoman for the group said.

The request from the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, a consortium of 31 states, comes as the coronavirus pandemic triggers a historic downturn in crude oil prices and fuel consumption, forcing the once-booming U.S. drilling industry to slash production and cut its workforce.

IOGCC spokeswoman Amy Childers said the group had recently asked the Department of Energy for stimulus funds “to help keep oil and gas crews working during the current crisis.” Childers did not say if a specific amount of funds was requested.

DOE officials would not comment on the proposal.

There are about 3 million abandoned oil and gas wells in the United States, about two thirds of which are unplugged, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. That number is likely to grow as the current market meltdown pushes hundreds of drilling companies toward bankruptcy, according to industry analysts, bankruptcy attorneys and state regulators.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-usa-wells/states-ask-trump-administration-to-pay-laid-off-oil-workers-to-plug-abandoned-wells-idUSKBN22I2KA

[Squinch]

1. The companies that drilled the wells should cap them. We shouldn't

have to pay to clean up after oil companies.

[DURHAM D]

3. Totally agree. nt

[DURHAM D]

2. I thought the state governments taxed every well

and put the money in a state savings account in case the oil companies failed and did not clean up their own mess. This is private expense and should not be paid by the tax payers.