How to Find Abandoned Wells: A Manual

Details

• Personal Author:
  Armstrong, Frederick E. ; Carroll HB Jr. ; Heemstra RJ ; Johnston KH
• Description:
  This guide was written to furnish the coal industry with a description of techniques, instruments, and clues on how to find abandoned oil and gas wells that have penetrated coal seams. The report includes specific information on searching techniques currently in use by several coal mining companies, gas-transmission companies, and waterflood operators, as well as information on state agencies responsible for the enforcement of laws and the preservation and distribution of data pertaining to the drilling, development, and abandonment of oil and gas wells. Comparative tests were performed with several commercial electronic metal detectors to determine the feasibility of using them to aid in the search for abandoned wells and to determine the instrument most suited for that particular use. The role of methane detectors to locate abandoned wells is described, including a case history. Tests were made to develop an efficient procedure to follow in systematically searching an area for metallic clues or hydrocarbon evidence to abandoned wells. The guide describes, in detail, a search sequence, including the collection of basic data, preparation of the selected area, and the physical search. Methods are given for evaluating the results. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environment Hydrocarbons Metals Occupational Health Oil And Gas Industry Safety
• Keywords:
  Coal industry; Abandoned sites; Oil industry; Gas industry; Coal seams; Hydrocarbons; Metallic compounds; Metals; Environmental factors
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Subseries:
  Information Circular
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Conference Publications ; Pamphlet or Booklet
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-51
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:10009445
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB-226789
• Citation:
  NTIS: PB 226 789, 1973; :1-51
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1973
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  NTIS: PB 226 789
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e9c7010127ad9aa4e9aca40c088d81345f79181b16106f01d85f0226c03cb901cbbf569326c004e788921db4857d0363e3dbc76c99862dbeabc85244194ba0dd
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/235867/cdc_235867_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.12 MB ]