DOE Forges Collaborative Partnerships With the Osage and Navajo Nations to Reduce Methane Emissions and other Environmental Impacts From Undocumented Oil and Gas Wells

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of a Department of Energy (DOE) program aimed at identifying and characterizing undocumented orphaned oil and natural gas wells, the Osage and Navajo Nations have each signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), Office of Resource Sustainability, to develop a framework for identifying undocumented orphaned wells (UOWs) on tribal lands and reducing methane emissions and other harmful environmental impacts. By leveraging the expertise of both DOE and tribal nations, these partnerships will enhance research initiatives for locating UOWs and developing an implementation plan to further advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan and “Net Zero” carbon economy goals. 

“It is estimated that there are hundreds of thousands of undocumented orphan wells leaking methane across the United States,” said Ryan Peay, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Resource Sustainability in DOE's Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. “This collaboration with the Osage and Navajo Nations represents a significant step forward in harnessing innovative technologies that not only support Federal and tribal efforts to reduce the environmental impacts of undocumented orphan wells, but also in prioritizing environmental stewardship of tribal lands through workforce training and development investments and efforts.”

"Osage Nation has a well-known history of assault and neglect on our land, which has left us with harmful chemicals leaking into the environment," said Osage Nation Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear. "Our efforts to rehabilitate our land are well underway, and while the damage we are finding is extensive, this partnership with the DOE significantly contributes to our ability to make the Osage Nation Reservation a safer environment for all. Additionally, the MOU highlights the importance of federal and tribal governments working in collaboration."

“This MOU is another step in the right direction of keeping our families safe here on the Navajo Nation,” said Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren. “We need initiatives like this MOU to start to help us rehabilitate and restore our territory and reduce the health burdens associated with orphaned wells.” This collaboration underscores the importance of integrating traditional knowledge with modern technology to identify, plug, and abandon orphaned wells. 

The term “orphaned well” refers to those oil and natural gas wells that have ceased production and no longer fulfill their intended functions. These wells lack a responsible owner or operator who can effectively seal them off and restore the surrounding site. UOWs are wells that lack an operator of record (orphan well), and do not exist in regulators’ inventories.

In conjunction with the Department of the Interior’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law efforts, FECM has been tasked with dedicating $30 million over a span of five years to develop innovative technologies, create “best practices”, and support broad field campaigns focused on the identification and surface-based assessment of UOWs through the Consortium Advancing Technology for Assessment of Lost Oil & Gas Wells (CATALOG) program. Through the MOU with the Osage Nation, the CATALOG program has already provided direct field support for UOW identification, emissions monitoring and measurement, and environmental impact assessment. The MOU with the Navajo aims to expand the CATALOG footprint over a different geographical/geological area, developing robust technologies that can work across the nation.

As these MOUs are advanced, DOE and the Osage and Navajo Nations will seek to establish best practices that can serve as models for other communities to reduce methane emissions and other environmental impacts associated with UOWs. 

Visit the FECM website for more information about FECM’s Undocumented Orphaned Wells Research Program. 

FECM minimizes environmental and climate impacts of fossil fuels and industrial processes while working to achieve net-zero emissions across the U.S economy. Priority areas of technology work include carbon capture, carbon conversion, carbon dioxide removal, carbon dioxide transport and storage, hydrogen production with carbon management, methane emissions reduction, and critical minerals production. To learn more, visit the FECM website, sign up for FECM news announcements, and visit the National Energy Technology Laboratory website.