As of late last night, the Porter Ranch well that's been leaking since October 23 and spewing nearly 100,000 metric tons of methane into the air (the running counter has since stopped) has been totally killed. Engineers with the California Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources confirmed today that the well was in fact dead. The leak was under control last week and was deemed to no longer be releasing gas uncontrollably into the air, but today's announcement means that the cement that was pumped into the well successfully held and the gas flow out of it has stopped. "Five separate tests were completed to determine the integrity of the cement seal, and air quality regulators also confirmed that gas emissions were controlled," the chief deputy director of the California Department of Conservation told KTLA.
Southern California Gas Company said in a release announcing the demise of the well that they recognize "the disruption" the event caused in the lives of the thousands of families that had to be relocated (sometimes paying super-premium prices for rent), and that they're hoping to earn back the "trust and confidence" of Porter Ranchers. Meanwhile, the death of the well means that the countdown to SoCalGas not paying relocation costs for displaced residents begins.
· SoCal Gas Has Permanently Stopped Leak in Gas Well Above Porter Ranch, State Confirms [KTLA]
· What Happens in Porter Ranch Now That the Enormous Gas Leak is Finally Plugged? [Curbed LA]