In September 2021, the AAAS EPI Center formed a working group of experts to address orphaned and improperly abandoned oil and gas wells. This interdisciplinary network of experts will share evidence and approaches and identify opportunities to share expertise to help inform policy decisions.
The AAAS EPI Center convened the working group to:
- Share information with peers across disciplines and sectors
- Leverage current knowledge and explore best practices or novel solutions
- Identify existing data gaps and uncertainties to design policy-relevant research questions
- Develop materials that provide information to help build awareness
- Connect policy- and decision-makers with expertise and information
Members
David D. Andrews, Engineering Manager, Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission West Region
Bruce Barker, County Attorney, Weld County, Colorado
Brett Bennett, President, Native State Environmental; Vice President, Rife Energy Operating, Inc.
Todd Boesiger, Deputy Director, Nebraska Oil & Gas Conservation Commission
Ted Boettner, Senior Researcher, Ohio River Valley Institute
Charlie Burd, Executive Director, Independent Oil and Gas Association of West Virginia
Diana Burn, Engineering Supervisor, Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission East Region
Shannon Chollett, Western Region Orphaned Well Program Supervisor, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
Ben Davis, Technical Program Coordinator, Montana Board of Oil & Gas Conservation
Grace Gallagher, Mineral Resources Specialist, Division of Mineral Resources, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Peter Gallagher, Advisor – Orphan Wells, Office of Policy, Management and Budget, U.S. Department of the Interior
David Hardie, Director, Liability Strategy Closure and Liability Branch, Alberta Energy Regulator; Chair, Council of Regulatory Officials, Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission
Jason Harmon, Deputy Chief, Office of Oil and Gas, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
Marilu Hastings, Chief Innovation and Strategy Officer, The Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation
Michael Hickey, Orphan Well Program Supervisor, Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission
James Hix, Environmental Protection Specialist, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission - Orphaned Well Program, Colorado Department of Natural Resources
Jim Hughes, West Environmental Protection Specialist, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
Brad Ice, Field Operations Manager, Oklahoma Corporation Commission
Austin Igleheart, Policy Associate, Energy, Environment and Transportation Program, National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
Ben Jones, Administrator/Petroleum Engineer, Montana Board of Oil & Gas Conservation
Mary Kang, Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, McGill University
Sara Kendall, Program Director and Director of the Washington, DC Office, Western Organization of Resource Councils
Kurt Klapkowski, Director, Bureau of Oil and Gas Planning and Program Management, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Tom Kropatsch, Oil and Gas Supervisor, Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
Ted Loukides, Chief, Oil & Gas Compliance and Enforcement Section, Division of Mineral Resources, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Jason Marshall, Director of Strategic Partnerships and Alliances, Berry Corporation
Jason Maxey, Director, Weld County Oil & Gas Energy Department
Keith May, Engineering Specialist, Oil and Gas Division, Railroad Commission of Texas
Mike McGinnis, Deputy Director, Oklahoma Corporation Commission
Tom Murphy, Director, Marcellus Center of Outreach and Research (MCOR), Pennsylvania State University
Drew Nelson, Staff Petroleum Engineer, Abandon/Orphan Wells Plugging, Nebraska Oil & Gas Conservation Commission
Uduak-Joe Ntuk, State Oil and Gas Supervisor, California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), California Department of Conservation
Natalie Pekney, Research Engineer, National Energy Technology Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy
Adam Peltz, Senior Attorney, Energy Program, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)
Luke Plants, Chief Operating Officer, Plants and Goodwin, Inc.
Daniel Raimi, Fellow, Resources for the Future; Lecturer, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan
Jack Renshaw, President, C&J Well Services; Executive Vice President, Well Services Division, Berry Petroleum
Eilis Rosenbaum, Research Engineer, National Energy Technology Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy
Seth Shonkoff, Executive Director, PSE Healthy Energy; Visiting Scholar, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, Berkeley; Affiliate, Environment Energy Technology Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
Jason Simmerman, Natural Resources Engineer, Division of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Trem Smith, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, Berry Corporation
Arthur Stewart, President, Cameron Energy Company
Robyn Strickland, Director, Oklahoma Corporation Commission
Amy Townsend-Small, Associate Professor, Department of Geology and Geography and Department of Environmental Science, University of Cincinnati
Donna Vorhees, Director, Energy Research Program, Health Effects Institute (HEI)
Cassandra Whitford, R&D Associate, Tradewater, LLC
Rob Young, West Environmental Protection Specialist, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
Last updated March 2023
