Abandoned Oil Wells are ideal candidates for Compressed Air Energy Storage.
Plugging a single abandoned well can cut its methane emissions by 99%, according to the EPA, and the work requires skills that oil and gas workers already possess. Yet despite the best efforts of state regulators, most abandoned wells —more than 2 million —remain unplugged. A federal program to plug so-called “orphan” wells could create as many as 120,000 well-paying jobs, while preventing hundreds of thousands of tons of greenhouse gases from escaping into the atmosphere. It’s an idea that appeals to environmental groups, fossil fuel dependent states, and even some fossil-fuel industry leaders.
