The $16 Million Was Supposed to Clean Up Old Oil Wells; Instead, It’s Going to Frack New Ones

North Dakota’s top oil and gas regulator had a problem. His department had yet to spend $16 million in federal coronavirus relief funds earmarked for cleaning up abandoned oil and gas well sites across the state, and the arrival of cold weather would halt the work. But rather than sending the funds to nursing homes, as some lawmakers requested, the state will now send it to oil companies to frack new wells.