Emergency effort to seal off leaks from abandoned oil well in Newport Beach, California faces delay by Gabriel San Román, Dec 26, 2025, Daily Pilot
An emergency remediation project to cap a methane leak from an “orphan” oil well in Newport Beach has hit an unexpected snag, as construction crews have experienced complications with infrastructure hundreds of feet below a Balboa Peninsula neighborhood.
State officials from the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), which is overseeing the project, initially hoped to complete the “interception” of the pipe before Christmas but missed that benchmark. Over a period of six days, construction crews had been unable to drill into the pipe in order to plug and seal the well with cement. The delay could last up to two weeks. …
Even if this plan works, deadly sour gas and methane will keep leaking to the surface and into homes there. The only “safe” repair is to tear down the homes, bring in a rig or two, and try to seal the leaker. Even then, no buildings or even public parks can ever be safe on top of it. Best is to barricade the area to prevent any people walking and breathing there. But, I expect the “safe” thing will never happen, because people would learn how deadly and irresponsible oil and gas companies and their “regulators” are.
In October, a Newport Beach resident who lives near 36th and Marcus Avenue contacted city officials about oil seeping into their home. In the course of responding to the complaint, officials detected unsafe and potentially flammable levels of methane and hydrogen sulfide.
Newport Beach declared a local emergency, and several residents had to evacuate their homes while city and county workers installed a ventilation system that allowed for their safe return. There is no ventilation system that makes methane, H2S, oil contamination in homes, leaking to surface into buildings from formation, or water wells safe! Just ask Bruce Jack at Spirit River, Alberta
2013-04-12: From EPA Vapour Intrusion Final Guidance for External Public Review. EPA wanted this kept confidential, but it’s too important, so I posted it years ago, and keep posting it.
Newport Beach, acting as the liaison between the state and the community, has launched a new page on the city’s website with timely updates on the project as it faces a delay that is frustrating to all.
The Marcus Avenue home where the leaks originated from remains red-tagged.
An emergency remediation project led by the state began on Dec. 3, when a drill rig arrived to the impacted neighborhood. The operation successfully located the pipe, associated with an abandoned oil well dating back to the 1920s, but different drilling methods and drill bits were not able to penetrate the cast-iron pipe.
On Monday, Driltek Inc., the contractor hired for the job, drilled down 780 feet, running parallel with the existing pipe instead of trying to intercept it at a Y-shaped angle. After drilling down 850 feet, holes punched into both pipes will MAYBE!allow them to be squeezed and filled with cement, which willMAYBE, but highly unlikely effectively seal off the oil source.
“The best thing we can do is to keep everybody informed,” Pope said. “The website is something that we launched after recognizing that the remediation is going to be delayed past Christmas.”
Street parking and restricted garage use near the work site continue to be impacted by drilling efforts.
State funds set aside to plug deserted oil wells are covering the costs associated with the emergency remediation project.Which means we, the ordinary people, pay for crimes of the soddenly profit rapists
Methane gas leak leads to evacuations on a Balboa Peninsula street by Susan Hoffman, Oct 23, 2025, LA Times
Several residences on Newport Beach’s Balboa Peninsula were placed under evacuation orders Wednesday due to a methane gas leak.
According to Newport Beach Fire Chief Jeff Boyles, the property owner at 3606 Marcus Ave. has experienced crude oil seeping into the home at least since summer. The oil has been rising up through the floor from a 1920s-vintage capped oil well situated 800 feet below the property.
“We’ve been back here several times since August to monitor the air quality from the oil seepage,” Boyles said Thursday. “NBFD crews, along with OC Health, tested the methane and hydrogen sulfide levels yesterday and found the level of flammability and toxicity too high for residents’ safety.
Boyles said the gases are pressurized beneath the foundation and trying to escape through the concrete. Officials decided to evacuate nearby residents as a precaution until remediation efforts could be employed to relieve pipes and help dissipate the gases.
“We wanted to make sure nearby residences didn’t have any type of ignition sources, like smoking,” turning on a light switch, fridge kicking in, static from petting your dog and or cat, etcthe chief continued, adding that seven residences adjacent to the north and south of the affected home were evacuated as a preventive measure.
The city issued a news release following discovery of the methane gas Wednesday.
“Our top priority is the safety of residents and our neighborhoods,” City Manager Grace Leung stated. “We are taking swift action to protect the public while closely assessing the situation and coordinating with partner agencies.”
Neighbors across the street from the house where the seepage has been taking place said Thursday police officers knocked on their doors at around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday to alert them about a problem in the immediate vicinity.
As a precaution, caution tape was placed across a nearby alley entrance, the residents said.
Refer also to:
Calmar residents know the drill as company works to cap abandoned well
Calmar Homeowners Suing Town of Calmar and Aztec Home Sales Inc over Leaking Wells
Sour Gas damages the brain, even at very low levels:After I posted these years ago (thanks to Diana Daunheimer finding them), they vanished offline. Gotta keep the people ignorant that the rich are poisoning for profit
1. Exposure to levels below 10 ppm permanently damage the human brain
2. Harm from levels below 10 ppm by Worksafe AlbertaThis now grossly goes to a UCP gov’t propaganda page about jobs. FFS. Some of those jobs kill.
3. Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) LOW LEVEL HEALTH HARM WARNINGS:
Sour Gas Concentration (ppm)
Symptoms/Effects
0.01-1.5
Odor threshold (when rotten egg smell is first noticeable to some). …
2-5
Prolonged exposure may cause nausea, tearing of the eyes, headaches or loss of sleep. Airway problems (bronchial constriction) in some asthma patients.
…
Hydrogen sulfide is used or produced in a number of industries, such as
- Oil and gas refining
- Mining
- Tanning
- Pulp and paper processing
- Rayon manufacturing
… Because it is heavier than air, hydrogen sulfide can collect in low-lying and enclosed spaces, such as manholes, sewers, and underground telephone vaults. Its presence makes work in confined spaces potentially very dangerous.
The health effects of hydrogen sulfide depend on how much H2S a worker breathes and for how long.
However, many effects are seen even at low concentrations. Effects range from mild, headaches or eye irritation, to very serious, unconsciousness and death.
This web page provides information on how hydrogen sulfide can affect your health, where you might find it, and how to prevent harmful exposures.
