Ontario invests $23.6M into province-wide strategy addressing abandoned oil and gas wells
Chatham-Kent is getting $2.5 million from the province as part of a $23.6 million investment to address risks posed by abandoned oil and gas wells.
The Ontario government announced the funding Friday to develop a province-wide strategy that includes identifying and plugging old oil and gas wells. Chatham’s funding is to help assist with emergency management costs from the 2021 explosion in downtown Wheatley.
“We are continuing to listen to our residents and local leaders to ensure our government’s plan addresses the needs of communities across Ontario, including Chatham-Kent,” Trevor Jones, MPP for Chatham-Kent-Leamington, said in a news release. “This funding will help municipalities address the risks posed by old oil and gas wells and help keep communities safe.”
To date, the province has invested $25 million to support the investigation, recovery and monitoring activities in Chatham-Kent as well as support businesses and residents evacuated.
According to the province, the $23.6 million will be used to develop an “oil and has action plan” to address the risks of old wells and conduct research to better understand the risks they pose.
The funding includes:
- $7.5 million over three years to directly support municipalities in their efforts to reduce risks and enhance emergency preparedness within their communities. Eligible municipalities will be invited to apply for funding for these activities in the coming weeks.
- Doubling of the existing Abandoned Works Program over three years to $6 million to support the plugging of old oil and gas wells.
- $2.5 million will go directly to the Municipality of Chatham-Kent to help with ongoing emergency management costs associated with the Wheatley explosion.
“This investment represents the first step in our government’s action plan to address the challenges and risks old oil and gas wells pose to communities across Ontario,” Graydon Smith, minister of natural resources and forestry, said in a news release. “With this funding, Chatham-Kent and other affected municipalities will be able to help keep their communities safe and prevent petroleum-related emergencies in the future.”
The province says the action plan will be guided by ongoing engagement and feedback from industry, municipalities, Indigenous partners, other key stakeholders, and the public.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours - a new global chess record
A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City's Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.