State Abandonment of Orphan Wells Project – Phase 2: Santa Maria Valley/Cat Canyon/Rincon

The proposed project consists of the plug and abandonment (P&A) of five existing orphan oil and gas wells in Santa Barbara, Ventura, and Los Angeles counties as part of CalGEM’s State Abandonment Program. The proposed work involves well abandonment and decommissioning tanks and other production-related facilities attendant to the wells. For well abandonment, each well would be cleaned out and then plugged with cement and inert mud to surface. After abandonment, the well head would be removed, and any remaining well casings and surface conductors would be cut. Once the area is clean, it would have suitable fill placed and compacted. These wells are generally situated within an established oil field in an industrial, recreational and/or agricultural setting. CalGEM has approved a task order for its contractor to perform the proposed work on the wells listed below. Notices of Intention will be issued to the contractor for administrative purposes only and do not constitute a discretionary approval. API # Well Name Lat Lon 0408321472 North Orcutt 3 34.87991714 -120.430908 0408321509 North Orcutt 8 34.87805176 -120.427841 0408301201 Union-Continental 1 34.79656982 -120.259438 0403712837 Needham 1 34.351097 -118.510917 0411101532 Hobson Fee 4 34.348049 -119.421570 Exempt Status: As the Lead Agency, CalGEM has determined that the proposed project is exempt from full environmental review requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to the specified exemptions marked in the section below. CalGEM further finds that the proposed project would not result in a significant adverse impact to the environment, or that any of the exceptions to the application of the exemptions apply (14 CCR § 15300.2).