The U.S. Department of Interior awarded nearly $5 million to Missouri to clean up legacy pollution. The materials are made up of things such as heavy metals that pollute the environment long after the industrial or extraction methods that produced them.
The funds will help the state evaluate nearly 5,000 documented orphaned oil and gas wells, including those with high methane emissions, and ready them for future plugging and remediation. The resources to clean up the polluted sites will create jobs that reduce methane emission leaks and reduce environmental and public health risks to surface and groundwater.
The Show-Me State is also eligible to receive nearly $27 million for additional well plugging. Abandoned oil and gas wells can cause pollution to recreation areas and backyards.
The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law also allocated $250 million to clean up legacy pollution well sites in national parks, national forests, national wildlife refuges, and other public lands.
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