When the Bureau of Land Management was tasked with cleaning up legacy wells in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, we knew the effort would present challenges.
As Alaskans well know, the harsh conditions and logistical hurdles of work in the Arctic are formidable. In addition, a lack of historical information about wells drilled decades ago, many of them before environmental safeguards were in place, adds to the complexity of the undertaking.
Despite these obstacles, the BLM remains fully committed to this effort and to creating a new legacy — one of protecting human health and the environment on the North Slope.
The BLM is making significant progress in cleaning up legacy wells, in large part due to $50 million in funding secured by U.S. Sen Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, in the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013. Last year, $10 million of this funding was used to plug three legacy wells at Umiat and to remove surface debris at three well sites on Cape Simpson. The BLM has awarded contracts to Marsh Creek, LLC and Olgoonik Construction Services to use a portion of the remaining $40 million to plug and clean up an additional 18 wells by December 2017.
Marsh Creek began work in early February 2016 on wells in the Cape Simpson and Barrow areas and, in three months, successfully completed work at 10 of the 15 wells. Additional work at these well sites, including surface cleanup, will be accomplished this summer, with the remaining work to be concluded during the 2017 winter travel season. Olgoonik also expects to complete remediation of three wells in Barrow later this summer.
The fact the wells at Cape Simpson were drilled in natural oil seeps has presented special challenges, specifically at Simpson Core Test #26. An attempt to plug this well proved unsuccessful. The BLM will conduct a thorough assessment with state, federal and industry technical experts to determine why it failed before making another attempt.
In addition, work done at Iko Bay Test #1 Well deviated from approved procedures, resulting in an incomplete plug but it will be plugged next winter under terms of the current contract.
The BLM has always worked closely with the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and will continue to do so. BLM provides the AOGCC staff the opportunity to observe all field work on the legacy wells, and we will continue to take advantage of their expertise in both the planning and field implementation stages to ensure the successful completion of this work.
As we move forward, we do so with a sense of accomplishment at what we have been able to achieve thus far. Prior to the most recent cleanup efforts, the BLM and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plugged and remediated 21 priority legacy well sites at a cost of $99 million between 2002 and 2013. The $50 million in Helium Act funding will likely result in the cleanup of 21 of the 47 sites still requiring remediation. Additional funds will be needed to clean up remaining wells, and the BLM is working to develop a strategy that will help us accomplish this important work.
Creating a new legacy doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen without hard work. Nevertheless, BLM is committed to continued coordination with the state of Alaska to create a legacy we can all be proud of for generations to come.
• Bud Cribley is the Alaska State Director of the Bureau of Land Management.
