Orphan wells a growing risk

VICTORIA — The number of inactive oil and gas wells that have not been properly decommissioned in British Columbia continues to rise despite legislation giving a regulatory agency more powers to ensure they are put out of service in a timely way, says the auditor general.

Carol Bellringer says contamination from oil and gas activity can affect human health, ecosystems, water and air quality, and the timely restoration of non-operating well sites reduces environmental risk and financial liability.

“Decommissioning an inactive well reduces the likelihood that oil, methane gas and saline water will move up through the well into freshwater aquifers, surface water, the ground or the atmosphere,” says a 54-page report released Thursday by Bellringer.

The B.C. Oil and Gas Commission, which is responsible for regulating oil and gas activities, has standards in place to decommission inactive wells and remediate sites, but it has lacked the tools to compel operators to do the work and pay the full cost, the report says.

The audit says there are almost 7,500 inactive oil and gas wells in B.C. that have not been properly decommissioned.

It says the industry’s security deposit fund to cover decommissioning and restoration costs was short more than $13 million last year. It says the total estimated restoration costs of all oil and gas wells in B.C., operating and not operating, was $3 billion as of February.

The oil and gas industry supported 10,000 jobs in B.C. in 2017.