"WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s $2.3 trillion plan to transform America’s infrastructure includes $16 billion to plug old oil and gas wells and clean up abandoned mines, a longtime priority for Western and rural lawmakers from both parties.
Hundreds of thousands of “orphaned” oil and gas wells and abandoned coal and hardrock mines pose serious safety hazards, while causing ongoing environmental damage. The administration sees the longstanding problem as an opportunity to create jobs and remediate pollution, including greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.
Biden said last week he wants to put pipefitters and miners to work capping the wells “at the same price that they would charge to dig those wells."
Many of the old wells and mines are located in rural communities that have been hard-hit by the pandemic. Biden’s plan would not only create jobs, but help reduce methane and brine leaks that pollute the air and groundwater. Methane is a powerful contributor to global warming."
Matthew Daly reports for the Associated Press April 1, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"Biden's Well Cleanup Plan: Climate Solution Or Gift For Oil?" (E&E News)
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