Reclaiming Orphan Wells: Louisiana

This project received a 2024 Top Project: Environmental Impact Award from Environment + Energy Leader!

Remediating and Reducing the Impact of Louisiana’s Orphan Wells

The Opportunity

There are currently more than 4,000 abandoned oil and gas wells across Louisiana. Without oversight or care from oil and gas operators, these wells can contaminate water sources or leak methane into the atmosphere, presenting significant environmental and safety risks. With federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the state is conducting orphan well site restoration. It enlisted CTEH and its parent company, Montrose, to help quantify methane emissions from abandoned wells and prioritize remediating those generating the greatest impact.

Our Approach

Other standard methods for quantifying methane emissions are extremely labor-intensive or strictly academic, which limited their use and greatly increase program costs. CTEH and Montrose collaborated with on-the-ground partners, including program managers, state experts, and the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, to develop a more efficient approach aligned with BIL’s regulatory objectives and methodology requirements under the American Carbon Registries.

The Results

CTEH and Montrose leveraged our combined oil well response and data management experience to conduct methane assessments and quantification, including using optical gas imaging cameras to identify and analyze leaks. Thanks to our partnership, Louisiana represents one of the most successful abandoned well programs and has completed hundreds of pre- and post-plug methane assessments, reducing the number and impact of orphaned wells.

What’s Next?

Louisiana is on track to achieve the goals it outlined when receiving its initial grant funding from the BIL. With CTEH and Montrose’s support, Louisiana will continue restoring abandoned well sites to benefit surrounding communities. CTEH and Montrose continue to perfect our combined novel approach and hope to support many other state programs in the coming year.