Abandoned Oil Wells Leak Pollutants
2020-06-20
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1More than a century of oil and gas drilling has left behind millions of unused wells, many of which release pollutants into the air and water.
2Drilling companies are likely to leave behind many more abandoned wells since they are losing money, as oil prices struggle to recover from historic lows, experts say.
3They note that the coronavirus health crisis crushed international demand for fuel.
4Leaks from abandoned wells have long been recognized as an environmental problem and a risk to public health.
5Studies have linked abandoned wells to groundwater pollution in the United States.
6They also have been blamed for a large number of public safety incidents over the years.
7Abandoned wells are also a serious threat to Earth's climate that researchers and government officials are only starting to understand.
8That finding comes from a Reuters news agency review of government records and statements by scientists, government experts and United Nations officials.
9The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change offered a proposal to U.N. member countries last year.
10It urged them to start studying and publishing information about the amount of methane released from abandoned oil and gas wells.
11Currently, Canada and the United States are the only countries to do so.
12In the U.S., more than 3 million abandoned oil and gas wells together released some 281 kilotons of methane in 2010.
13Those numbers come from the Environmental Protection Agency's most recent report to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change.
14The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA report noted that the amount of methane emitted is almost equal to the burning of 16.2 million barrels of crude oil.
15The true amount, the EPA said, may be 3 times higher because of incomplete data.
16The problem is less serious in Canada, where most oil production comes from oil sands mining instead of traditional drilling operations.
17The Canadian government believes the country's 313,000 abandoned wells released about 10.1 kilotons of methane in 2018, far less than the United States.
18The effect of abandoned wells on the health of our planet is more difficult to study.
19The governments of Russia, Saudi Arabia and China - the world's other top oil and gas producers - did not respond to Reuters' requests for comments.
20Researchers note that it is impossible to say the total amount of emissions worldwide without better records.
21But an estimate by Reuters, based on the U.S. numbers for oil and gas production, would place the total number of abandoned wells at around 29 million.
22That number of wells could release as much as 2.5 million tons of methane per year.
23I'm John Russell.
1More than a century of oil and gas drilling has left behind millions of unused wells, many of which release pollutants into the air and water. 2Drilling companies are likely to leave behind many more abandoned wells since they are losing money, as oil prices struggle to recover from historic lows, experts say. They note that the coronavirus health crisis crushed international demand for fuel. 3Leaks from abandoned wells have long been recognized as an environmental problem and a risk to public health. Studies have linked abandoned wells to groundwater pollution in the United States. They also have been blamed for a large number of public safety incidents over the years. 4Abandoned wells are also a serious threat to Earth's climate that researchers and government officials are only starting to understand. That finding comes from a Reuters news agency review of government records and statements by scientists, government experts and United Nations officials. 5The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change offered a proposal to U.N. member countries last year. It urged them to start studying and publishing information about the amount of methane released from abandoned oil and gas wells. 6Currently, Canada and the United States are the only countries to do so. In the U.S., more than 3 million abandoned oil and gas wells together released some 281 kilotons of methane in 2010. Those numbers come from the Environmental Protection Agency's most recent report to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. 7The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA report noted that the amount of methane emitted is almost equal to the burning of 16.2 million barrels of crude oil. 8The true amount, the EPA said, may be 3 times higher because of incomplete data. 9The problem is less serious in Canada, where most oil production comes from oil sands mining instead of traditional drilling operations. The Canadian government believes the country's 313,000 abandoned wells released about 10.1 kilotons of methane in 2018, far less than the United States. 10The effect of abandoned wells on the health of our planet is more difficult to study. The governments of Russia, Saudi Arabia and China - the world's other top oil and gas producers - did not respond to Reuters' requests for comments. 11Researchers note that it is impossible to say the total amount of emissions worldwide without better records. But an estimate by Reuters, based on the U.S. numbers for oil and gas production, would place the total number of abandoned wells at around 29 million. That number of wells could release as much as 2.5 million tons of methane per year. 12I'm John Russell. 13The Reuters news agency reported this story. John Russell wrote the story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 14________________________________________________________________ 15Words in This Story 16drill - v. to make a hole in something with a drill or power tool 17review - n. a study or examination of something 18crude - adj. something unprocessed or in a natural state 19data - n. facts or information used usually to estimate, study, or plan something 20per - prep. for each