BUFFALO, S.D. (AP) - South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has allocated $727,700 in her proposed 2021 fiscal year budget to plug 40 abandoned gas wells in the state.
In many cases in which wells aren’t properly plugged before being abandoned, they can pose a risk of explosions, groundwater contamination and surface leaks, The Rapid City Journal reported.
State environmental regulators have said the orphaned wells do not pose an immediate environmental risk, but Noem said during a news conference that she wants the situation to be resolved as quickly as possible.
The wells were drilled in 2006 by a Texas limited partnership called Spyglass Cedar Creek. Six years later, Spyglass suffered from falling natural gas prices, bankruptcy and lawsuits that led state regulators to revoke the company’s permits for the wells.
The state Department of Environment and Natural Resources estimated that the cost of plugging the wells and reclaiming the surface area around them will be $887,000.
Though Noem’s proposal does not cover the plugging of the wells entirely, a Noem staffer said the remainder of the funding would be sought through legislation.
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