Energy Issues and Answers: Oil Well Reclamation

In Part Three of "Energy Issues and Answers: Oil Reclamation," Dave Thompson talks with North Dakota Mineral Resorces director Lynn Helms about the actual reclamation work at an oil well.

In Part Two, Prairie Public's Dave Thompson talks to North Dakota Mineral Resources Director Lynn Helms about how an oil well is capped, as it's being prepped for reclamation.

As part of the money the state received from the federal “CARES Act,” abandoned oil wells will be plugged –and reclaimed.

This is a three-part series explaining what are abandoned and/or orphaned oil wells, why the CARES Act money is being set aside for this purpose, how the wells will be plugged and reclaimed, and potentially how some wells could come back to life, should economic conditions improve.

In part two of this series, we’ll talk about how a well is properly plugged.