July 18, 2023:
CalGEM released its State Abandonment Draft Expenditure Plan during a virtual public meeting. The draft plan included the initial list of orphan wells CalGEM proposes to permanently plug and seal using state and federal funds. Public comments on the draft expenditure plan were accepted through August 11.
February 21, 2023: CalGEM released a final orphan well prioritization methodology, in response to public feedback received on a September 2022 draft. This methodology ranks and prioritizes the state’s more than 5,300 orphan, deserted, and potentially deserted wells for potential state abandonments.
CalGEM proposed taking a two-phased approach to prioritize wells for state plugging and abandonment that may pose the greatest risk to public health, safety, and the environment, while also taking into consideration the concerns of the local jurisdictions and communities, and economic efficiencies associated with the ordering of well abandonments.
Two-Phased Approach:
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an initial technical screening of the wells that evaluates criteria across four key categories: surface study, downhole study, other potential hazards, and impacts on disadvantaged communities.
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a secondary screening that will incorporate local government and public feedback on the provisional ranking and prioritization of the well inventory and consider practical factors to ensure efficient allocation of resources to plug and abandon wells.
Draft Screening Methodology Released September 2022
A draft of the screening methodology was released for public comment on September 15, 2022. Public comment period was open through Friday, October 14, 2022.
Orphan Well State Abandonment Screening Methodology Key Terms
Abandonment: Permanent closure and sealing of a well by placing cement and/or other approved materials in the wellbore or casing, as specified in California laws or regulations.
Casing: Large-diameter pipe lowered into an open hole and cemented in place.
Cleanout tag: The depth that wellbore-fill material such as sand, scale or organic materials, and other debris have been removed from the wellbore.
Fish: Anything unintentionally left or lost in a wellbore. Once the component is lost, it is properly referred to as simply "the fish."
Fluid level: The depth, or distance from surface, that the fluid in a well incapable of natural flow will reach under static conditions.
Liner: Any string of casing in which the top does not extend to the surface but instead is suspended from inside the previous casing string.
Percentile: A measure in statistics indicating the value where a given percentage of observations in a group of observations fall below. For example: a well with parameter's value of 80th percentile means that 80% of the total wells have parameter's value below that well.
Rig: The machine used to drill, workover, or plug and abandon a wellbore.
Wellhead: The surface termination of a wellbore that incorporates facilities for installing casing hangers, production tubing, and surface flow-control facilities.
CalGEM State Abandonments Frequently Asked Questions (Coming Soon)
For questions regarding CalGEM State Abandonments and orphan wells, please email
CalGEMOrphanWells@conservation.ca.gov.
