B.C. begins next round of site cleanup program for dormant wells

VICTORIA — B.C. is adding another $50 million to its dormant well clean-up program, which is designed to create jobs and improve the environment.

For this round of funding the province noted it will be targeting inactive wells that were chosen by landowners, municipalities and Indigenous communities for priority cleanup.

“Our dormant well clean-up program has already proven itself as a critical part of B.C.’s economic recovery, supporting nearly 1,000 jobs for local workers. This second round of funding will continue to be a ‘win-win’ for our economy and environment,” said Bruce Ralston, minister of energy, in a statement.

The program is open to applications from oil and gas field service companies that have contracts to do work on sites nominated in 2020. The nominations were made through a portal created by officials last year to find out which oil or natural gas sites should be prioritized.

The clean-up program is part of a larger $150 million effort by the federal government to clean up sites. The funding given to B.C. is split into three programs aimed at boosting the provincial economy and fast-tracking environmental restoration:

the Dormant Sites Reclamation Program;
the Orphan Sites Supplemental Reclamation Program, and
the Legacy Sites Reclamation Program.

According to the province, the first $50 million round of the program created nearly 1,000 jobs and supported restoration work activities at 139 sites. Approximately $15 million was allocated to sites within the province’s Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR), a zone in which agriculture is recognized as the priority use. The work within the ALR includes projects planned or already underway on 325 sites for decommissioning and 122 sites for restoration work.

The program has also funded successful abandonment activities at five dormant well sites located in woodland caribou habitat. The caribou is considered a “species at risk” by the province.

Eligible B.C. oil and gas field service companies and contractors, which have registration, offices and operations in the province, can apply for up to $100,000 or 50 per cent of total costs, whichever is less, per eligible work activity.

The decommissioning and restoration of oil and gas sites in B.C. is regulated by the BC Oil and Gas Commission, which has developed a liability management plan.