The North Lake Oologah Phase of the Lake Oologah Oil Spill project is located in an approximately 26 square mile oil fields adjacent to and east, northeast, and northwest of Lake Oologah in Rogers and Nowata counties, Oklahoma. The site encompasses approximately 16,640 acres divided in two distinctive areas with one that is 1 mile wide in an east-west direction and 7 miles long in a north-south direction on the east side of the lake. The other area is approximately 8 miles east-west by 2 to 4 miles north-south on the NE and NW side of the lake. This area includes all or parts of 25 sections in one township and two ranges of the public land survey system. This project is a continuation of three previous phases that concentrated on sections adjacent to the east side of the lake. This project area focuses on areas that are adjacent to creeks that drain directly into Lake Oologah as well as areas on the north side of Lake Oologah that had previously not been addressed.
The North Lake Oologah phase includes Sections 3, 10, 15, 22, and 27 of Township 24 North, Range 17 East; Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 27 and 34 of Township 25 North, Range 17 East; and Sections 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 21 and 22 of Township 25 North, Range 16 East, of the public land survey system. The Lake Oologah Oil Spill site is part of a large, mature and declining oil field. The field is reported to be up to 100 years old. Historical information indicates that drilling and production activities began shortly before 1900, and continued through the 1990's. Wells within the project area are typically shallow, with a total depth of less than 500 feet below ground surface. Most wells are reported to be completed in, and produce from, the Bartlesville Sand formation at depths ranging from 400 feet to 725 feet. For a detailed site description, please refer to Polrep No. 1
Previous Site Actions
The North Oologah Phase was initiated after further field investigations revealed a significant number of abandoned leaking wells threatening waterways in areas that drain directly into Lake Oologah. These areas were not originally targeted as part of the previous three phases of the Lake Oologah Spill Project, but the severity of the threat and proximity to the lake and its tributaries prompted the OCC and EPA to initiate a comprehensive assessment and coordinate removal. The removal entails the plugging and abandonment (P&A) of the wells as well as restoration of affected areas. All activities are being conducted in coordination between the EPA, OCC, OERB, and any identified Responsible Party (RP). Actions related to prior EPA actions can be reviewed in the Lake Oologah Spill Project Phase I, II, and III Polreps.
The North Lake Oologah Phase activities began with the development of a comprehensive site work plan. The plan identified several key tasks necessary to implement the project. The tasks included well and contamination assessment and the search for Potentially Responsible Party (PRP), both tasks completed in the spring of 2007. Another task identified is the ongoing P&A and remediation of the sites.
Prior to removal activities, access agreements from property owners were secured and field assessment commenced in February 2007, continuing for six to seven weeks. The pollution threat potential of each well and tank battery was determined on a per well/tank battery basis. Around 730 abandoned wells and 109 tank batteries, debris, or stain were identified during the assessment. Of those, 158 wells were classified to be leaking or with a substantial threat to leak oil into the lake or its tributaries, and refer to as “EPA” wells. During the identification of PRPs thirty-four (34) Notices of Federal Interests (NOFI) letters were sent to PRPs and face to face meetings conducted to explain the PRPs the process and determine potential liability. With the information obtained during this process several RPs were identified to be liable and requested to take action. For more specifics related to the assessment and PRP search please refer to Polrep 1.
P&A activities began on October 10, 2007 with a kick off meeting attended by EPA and contractors. During the meeting, all parties were made aware of their respective responsibilities, project schedule, site health and safety, and the project area in which the plugging activities were to begin. The scheduling of well plugging within the project area specified by the OSC continues to be fluid due to the usual changes encountered during this type of project. As of January 15, 2008 and after a break for the holidays which coincided with adverse winter weather conditions, a total of 48 “EPA” wells have been plugged and 46 wells cut, capped and the work area restored (P&A).
Identified RPs have taken the responsibility to either secure, P&A, or place some of their wells back into production with the EPA and OCC monitoring their work. Of the total of wells classified as “EPA” wells, 100 are being currently addressed by the RPs.
Complete the North Lake Oologah plugging activities with 10 wells remaining to be plugged and 12 wells needed to be cut, capped and restored. In addition, 2 wells that were attempted to be plugged need to be re-drilled due to obstructions in the well bore or the attempted plugging proven unsuccessful.
Continue coordinating with the OCC the monitoring of RP activities to ensure that well work is completed to standards whether they are P&A, secured, or placed back into production.
Complete all P&A activities and secure RP work to standards. Plan for the project demobilization, including permanently closing down the site command post and its operations. Begin the preparation of the project’s final report.
• Continue to monitor RP clean up activities.
• Adverse winter weather continues to be a factor on field activities.
• Continue the tracking of project budget.
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