Together the nonprofit has eliminated more than 700,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) emissions and delivered an estimated net present value of $2,250,000 to Pennsylvania taxpayers.
Every one of these wells was the state's responsibility. WDF raised the money to plug them through private donations, corporate support, and community fundraising.
The emissions eliminated equal taking more than 163,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road for a year.
"Pennsylvania has been drilling for oil and gas for more than 150 years, and the bill for that history is sitting in people's backyards, trailer parks, and summer camps," said Curtis Shuck, founder and chairman of the Well Done Foundation. "Fifteen wells plugged without asking taxpayers to foot the bill is a big deal. But there are hundreds of thousands more out there, and we can't do it alone."
WDF's Pennsylvania work began in September 2021 with Seneca Resources Company LLC.
Its first adopted well was the Russell M. Clark Estate #11, a legacy oil well in Bradford Township, McKean County, drilled in the late 1800s.
The state had been responsible for it since the early 1990s.
Next came the Warrant 3489 Johnston & Mathews #1, which sat in a residential neighborhood in the City of Bradford.
Many of WDF's Pennsylvania wells sat right where people live, work, and play:
-- Bear Run 001 (Erie County): an undocumented gas well found in a mobile home park, just 15 feet from a family's home. Plants & Goodwin plugged it in February 2023, with support from the Project Canary Foundation, Well Done Global, and many individual donors. That one well eliminated 23,746 metric tons of CO₂e, and the project was featured in the National Geographic channel series “How Do They Fix That?”
-- Martha Smith #1 (Waterford Township, Erie County): plugged in 2022 partnering with Plants & Goodwin (P&G), with support from the French Creek Valley Conservancy and Diane MacEachern’s COOL Birthday fundraising campaign.
-- 2624 W. 25th Street #001 and Grasshopper #001 (Mill Creek Township, Erie County): two wells near homes with methane readings above 172,500 ppm and 123,300 ppm. WDF plugged them in collaboration with Mill Creek Township and PADEP.
-- Camp Elliott 1 (Volant, Lawrence County): a leaking well on the grounds of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Camp, close to the children, staff, and waterways the camp serves. WDF installed a permanent stream crossing that the camp will keep using after the plugging was finished.
-- Sorce 001 (Mill Creek Township, Erie County): an orphaned well hidden for decades under a concrete manhole behind an abandoned motel, on land the township had bought for redevelopment. Its original operator died in 2002, and no one had taken responsibility for it since.
WDF plugged it in June 2025 in collaboration with PADEP, confirmed zero emissions after closure, and restored the site with native seed so the township can move ahead with its plans. At 236,036 metric tons of CO₂e, it's WDF's single largest emission reduction in Pennsylvania.
The newest well in the count, 101 Cannel Mine Road #1 in Armstrong County, was plugged in late September 2026.
Students in the Dice Club at Pittsburgh's Taylor Allderdice High School adopted the well and raised money toward plugging it, and Governor Josh Shapiro recognized their effort.
WDF's general fund covered the rest of the cost.
"These students didn't just study the problem. They raised money and helped fix it," Shuck said. "That's the model: communities, companies, and donors stepping up so that taxpayers aren't stuck with the bill."
[See related story: High schoolers hold fundraisers to plug oil and gas wells.]
WDF works closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) on each project, from adopting the well through the plugging certificate.
WDF also checks every plugged site after closure. Annual post-plug inspections were recently completed on the Erie County, Metcalf, and Bucyrus Erie wells.
WDF is lining up more Pennsylvania wells for 2027. To support the next one, visit the Well Done Foundation website or. #onewellatatime
Click Here for the Well Done Foundation announcement.
(Photo: Situated in a trailer park, and only 15 feet from a residence, this undocumented orphaned well symbolizes the complex relationship between natural resource extraction and environmental stewardship. The Bear Run 001 was plugged in February 2023.)
PA Oil & Gas Industry, Public Notice Dashboards:
PA Weekly Oil & Gas Compliance Snapshot - October 17 to 23
-- DEP - Day 119: Contaminated Water Discharges Continue, Failure To Comply With Cleanup Order At Equitrans Water SVC [EQT] Richter Impoundment In Greene County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Routine Inspections Find 16 Anderson Energy SVC LLC Conventional Wells Abandoned, Not Plugged In Forest County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Follow-Up Inspections Of 4 Michael Harju Conventional Wells Found They Continue To Be Abandoned, Not Plugged Going Back To 2020 In Westmoreland County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Routine Inspections Find 3 Keystone Crude LLC Abandoned, Unplugged Conventional Gas Wells In Allegheny County [PaEN]
-- DEP: EQT Production Site Prep For Well Plugging Leads To Significant Well Pad, Access Road Erosion Violations In Fayette County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Contaminated Water Tank Failed Causing Release At Diversified Production LLC Conventional Oil & Gas Well Site In Warren County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Contaminated Water Release Discovered At Deer Run Oil & Gas LLC Conventional Oil & Gas Well Site In Crawford County
-- DEP - Day 645: First Amer Energy Inc. Failed To Comply With Order To Restore 3 Conventional Oil & Gas Well Sites In Warren County [PaEN]
-- PUC PaOneCall Damage Prevent Committee Announces $151,550 In Penalties Against 96 Companies For Violating Underground Utility Notification Regulations
-- PUC Accepting Nominations For PaOneCall Damage Prevention Committee
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - October 24 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Individual Stormwater Permit For Shippingport Power Station Natural Gas Fuel Yard In Beaver County For Aligned Data Centers Project [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For NFG Midstream Covington Double Natural Gas Pipelines Thru Farmington, Deerfield, Chatham Twps. In Tioga County [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For XTO Energy Inc. 1.78 Mile, 12-Inch Aboveground Shale Gas Water Pipeline In Butler County [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Air Quality Plan Approval For Clear Water Technology Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Facility In Jessup Twp., Susquehanna County [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On State Air Quality Permit For CNX Gas Company Shale Gas Water Impoundment In Greene County [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Renewal Of Title V Air Quality Permit For 165 MW Armstrong Power Natural Gas Power Plant In Armstrong County [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 33 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In September; 291 In 2026 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 53 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In October 24 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
-- DEP To Hold Nov. 10 Meeting/Hearing On Renewal Of NPDES Water Quality Mining Activities Permit For The LCT Energy Rustic Ridge #1 Underground Coal Mine In Fayette, Westmoreland Counties [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Individual Stormwater Permit For PPL Electric Stanton Swoyersville Exeter 69 kv Line Rebuild Project In Luzerne County [PaEN]
-- PUC Launches Working Group To Review Electric, Natural Gas, Water & Wastewater Utility Ratemaking, Address Affordability, Transparency And Changing Economic Conditions [PaEN]
Related Article This Week:
-- DEP Celebrates Plugging 500th Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Well; DEP Continues To Issue Violations By The Hundreds To Conventional Well Owners For Abandoning Wells [PaEN]
-- Well Done Foundation Completes Plugging 15 Orphan Conventional Oil & Gas Wells In PA, Delivering $2.25 Million In Value To Taxpayers [PaEN]
-- Senate Committee Reports Out Resolution Authorizing Study Of The Economic Importance Of Conventional Oil & Gas Industry; Forgetting The Billions In Costs The Industry Dumps On Taxpayers [PaEN]
-- Physicians For Social Responsibility PA, Protect PT Issue New Citizens Guide On Tracking Contaminated Radioactive Water, Waste From Oil & Gas Development [PaEN]
-- Environmental Health Project, Food & Water Watch, Partners Host Nov. 10 Webinar On Shale Gas Fracking, Data Centers And Your Health [PaEN]
Related Guest Essays:
-- TribLive Guest Essay: Oil, Gas Well Brine Contains Hazardous Pollutants, So Why Are We Still Dumping It On Our Roads? - By David E. Hess, former Secretary of DEP
-- Erie Times-News Guest Essay: Oil And Gas Brine Does Not Belong On Erie County Roads - By David E. Hess, former Secretary of DEP [PDF of Article]
NewsClips:
-- The Allegheny Front: Allderdice High School Students In Pittsburgh Partner With Well Done Foundation To Plug Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Well In Armstrong County; Some Say Industry Should Cleanup Its Own Mess
-- Observer-Reporter: Jerome Bettis, DEP Secretary Visit Washington County To Celebrate 500th Abandoned Conventional Well Plugging
-- TribLive: Proposed Shale Gas Well In Salem Twp. Concerns Local Residents In Westmoreland County
-- Reuters: US To Release Heating Oil From Reserve In Bid To Tame Prices
-- Financial Times: Iran War Sparks Heating Crisis In US Northeast As Heating OIl Prices Rise, Winter Approaches
-- Williamsport Sun: Lycoming County Area Continues To Feel Sting Of Rising Fuel Costs
-- Williamsport Sun: High Fuel Prices Prompted Rate Increase At Lycoming County Landfill
-- PA Petroleum Distributors Assn.: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Extends Hours Of Driver Service Waivers Until Dec. 16 Due To ‘Current Global Supply Chain Disruptions’
-- USDA Announces $8 Billion Harvest Fuel Relief Program To Help Pay For Increased Fuel Costs
-- National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition: Harvest Fuel Relief Program Offers Little Hope For A Brighter Future For Farmers
-- Grist: President Vowed To Stop An ‘Energy Emergency,’ Then He Created A Real One
-- Inside Climate News: After A Decade Of Efforts To Regulate Methane From Oil & Gas Industry, The President’s Administration Promises New Rules, Has Rolled Back Or Blocked Previous Attempts
-- Bloomberg Commentary: President’s Arm-Twisting For New York’s Constitution Natural Gas Pipeline May End In Regret
[Posted: October 24, 2026 ] PA Environment Digest
