Undocumented orphaned wells pose hazards to both the environment and the climate. Scientists are building modern tools to help locate, assess, and pave the way for ultimately plugging these forgotten ...

Abandoned oil wells pose a significant environment and health risk, as they can leak methane — a potent greenhouse gas — into the atmosphere and contaminate groundwater. The total estimated number of ...

A knee-high pipe sticking out of the ground not far from a school. A gurgle in a pond on rolling farmland. A patch of forest undergrowth hiding a long-forgotten, leaking oil well. Relics like these ...

The model was trained on about one hundred maps, and was used to sort through topographical maps spanning 45 years. By Mack DeGeurin Published Dec 5, 2024 2:25 PM EST Get the Popular Science daily ...

Outside the small town of Pierce, Colorado, a group of old wells were shut down six years ago when they stopped producing oil. But a startup now wants to repurpose the wells for a geothermal energy ...

California’s idle oil wells risk pollution, but activists push for health and climate action. California’s idle oil wells pose risks of pollution and health hazards if left improperly sealed.

More than three-quarters of U.S. oil wells, collectively, make just 6% of the country's oil. They're called marginal wells because of how small their output is. But they're a big deal. The vast ...

The State Lands Commission has re-abandoned six oil and gas wells in Summerland, including the Well A and Well B project finished in February. Credit: State Lands Commission photo The State Lands ...

Scattered across the United States are remnants from almost 170 years of commercial drilling: hundreds of thousands of forgotten oil and gas wells. These undocumented orphaned wells (UOWs) are not ...