The Site is the location of approximately 70 old, non-productive crude oil wells and water injection wells, located along the NY-PA border, in Steuben County, NY. A number of these depleted wells are submerged in a wetland, comprising approximately 10 acres of surface area; more than 50 wells are located on hillsides adjacent to the wetlands.
As as result of a referral from the NYSDEC, EPA has opened the CWA-OPA '90 spill fund, and has a $3,000,000 budget to plug all the wells within the wetland and on the down-slope sides of the adjacent hills.
The subcontract for the plugging work has been awarded. The Winter months will be used to fine-tune the work plan, make arrangements for obtaining legal access to the wells, and obtaining state/federal permits. The plugging of the wells, not in the wetlands-proper, will begin as soon as possible; plugging the wells in the wetlands will occur in the Spring. The project also includes the removal of an extensive oil piping system that connected the wells to storage tanks, excavation of contaminated soil wherever it is found, and removal of contaminated vegetation. Metal storage tanks will be deconned and scrapped. Wooden tanks will be chipped and mixed with contaminated soil for bioremediation.
At the end of the removal action, all areas from where contaminated soil was removed will be back-filled and graded to the pre-existing terrain. EPA will involve forestry students from SUNY-Brockport to assist in identifying native plants to replace the ones damaged or destroyed during the removal.