France 5's The Ghosts of Oil reveals lasting effects of 'zombie wells'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Le Monde
30 Jan 22:49
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A documentary titled The Ghosts of Oil by Audrey Garric depicts the long-lasting effects of abandoned oil and gas wells left behind by the industry.

A pump jack lifts oil out of a well, during a sandstorm in Midland, Texas, US, on April 13, 2018. (Reuters)

A stunning investigation warns of the 20 to 30 million "zombie wells" that have been abandoned by the oil and gas industries and now pose substantial health and environmental risks.

The documentary titled The Ghosts of Oil by Audrey Gloaguen accompanied the whistleblowers who hunt down these "delay bombs" and expose their harmful effects.

The findings revealed, according to the France 5 documentary, that the staggering but still indefinite number of globally abandoned oil and gas wells damage people's health, cause significant soil contamination, and exacerbate climate change.

These ancient boreholes allow oil, hazardous materials, and, most importantly, methane, a greenhouse gas much more potent than CO2, to leak from beneath the soil, oceans, or in the atmosphere.

These "zombie wells", the documentary argued, have been forsaken either by enterprises that have vanished, declared inactive by corporations that refuse to pay the costs of repair, or were poorly reconstructed by corrupt subcontractors. The probe also revealed oil workers trying to cover up the scandals, which health authorities turn a blind eye to.

However, the documentary did not touch on the petroleum sector, Le Monde highlighted. The news agency noted that had the documentary touched on numbers, which have been scientifically compiled regarding oil production and methane gas emissions from the wells, per se, The Ghosts of Oil would have gained an unprecedented advantage.

The documentary, according to Le Monde, cites a few examples of the threats faced by the world as a result of these abandoned wells. For example, several homes in Pennsylvania and New York were reduced to crumbs after bursting in 2011 and 2019 as a result of ground-infiltrated methane, although no one was hurt.

Another example showed a well in Texas spewing water that has created a massive poisonous lake that is still expanding and emitting lethal gases, including methane and hydrogen sulfide. The documentary also made reference to the increased occurrence of sinkholes.