The Ohio Division of Natural Resources had located a leaking gas well in Noble County located inside the lakebed of Seneca Lake. This well presented a safety threat to boaters in addition to the environmental threat posed. The well was inaccessible during summer months when the lake was at full capacity. However, during a two-month window between December and February, the Army Corps of Engineers would partially drain the lake, allowing access into the flowage easement. Even still, the drained portion of the lakebed would be too unstable to traverse on foot, let alone to mobilize forward nearly 60 tons of well-plugging equipment.
P&G partnered with an engineering firm that specializes in composite mat systems to build an access road and well pad inside the lakebed. Using 145 composite mats secured by two dozen concrete deadmen, 195 timber mats, six steel road plates, and 570 tons of stone, P&G was able to construct the access into the lake from a nearby township road. Once on site, the P&G rig supervisor worked with a high sense of urgency to ensure the well was plugged in one week’s time. Well plugging equipment was demobilized one day prior to heavy rainfall and lake flooding that would have caused significant equipment loss.
