We are developing a new service line of orphan well plugging. These wells, which have no solvent owner of record, can leak oil, gas and other toxic chemicals into our air and water. Plugging these wells will protect our environment, climate and communities while creating well-paying, stable jobs.

The State of Ohio has well data available for each of 88 counties and 66 counties have had oil and gas activity. Stonebridge initially obtained data for 32 counties in Excel spreadsheets. We would like to collaborate with students to obtain, organize, and analyze this data.

This will involve several different steps for the students, including:

• Familiarizing themselves with orphan well plugging and state of Ohio well data.
• Pulling down, saving, and organizing the datasets by categories for Ohio counties into Excel.
• Calculating results and plotting data in graphs and charts.

Bonus steps in the process would also include:

• Recommending priority counties for orphan well plugging.
• Analyzing orphan wells plugged by the state or in line for state contracts against known orphan well data.

By the end of the project, students should demonstrate:

• Familiarity with orphan wells
• Knowledge of priority counties
• Calculation of important results and creation of graphs
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Bonus steps would include:

• Recommending topics for future analysis of well data

Final deliverables should include:

• Completed data sets for all 88 Ohio counties
• A summary report of orphan well data for the state
• A presentation summary of statewide orphan well data

Students will connect directly with us for mentorship throughout the project. We will be able to provide answers to questions such as:

• Our research
• Current understanding of orphan well plugging
• Input on choices, problems or anything else the students might encounter.