Project Profile: Orphaned Well Reclamation Work in Canyonlands National Park

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
Orphaned Wells | FY22 $450,000

Current Project Status: NPS is working with BLM to reclaim and remove the above ground well casing. Interagency agreements are in place. Planning for the project is ongoing and BLM estimates as project completion date sometime in FY25.

Open surface casing near trailhead - originally plugged by operator in 1920's.

NPS / Nida Holiday

The National Park Service has identified an orphaned well in need of reclamation work at Canyonlands National Park, including site restoration and potential plugging of the well. The well, the Hazelwood #1, was originally plugged by operators in the 1920’s but does not meet current safety standards. It remains as an open surface casing that appears to be improperly secured near a trail, posing a risk to park resources and visitors. To ensure the well will no longer be a potential hazard, it will be plugged and remediated meeting current federal and state safety standards.

Why? Wells in need of plugging are an ongoing serious threat to park resources and visitor safety. If left unmitigated, they have a potential to cause damage to water resources, down slope vegetation and terrestrial and aquatic organisms. Also, methane leaking from unplugged wells is harmful to people and a serious contributor to climate change.

What else? The well, the Hazelwood #1, was designated a “dryhole” - meaning, it never produced economic quantities of oil or gas – by the State of Utah in 1926.

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law - Energy Community Revitalization Program

This project was made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed on November 15, 2021. It is a historic investment in the restoration and protection of the environment.