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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 24-1469

NOTICES

DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP); Opening of Grant Application Period for Two Well Plugging Grant Programs

[54 Pa.B. 6523]
[Saturday, October 12, 2024]

 The Department of Environmental Protection (Department) announces an opportunity to apply for up to $44,457,220 in grant funding through the Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP), established under the Federal Inflation Reduction Act which provides new authorities under section 136 of The Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. § 7436) to reduce methane emissions from the petroleum and natural gas sector. Nationwide, MERP will provide more than $1 billion in financial funding for grants and other activities to reduce methane emissions.

 The MERP Well Plugging Grant Programs include two grants that will be launched simultaneously. The MERP Small Operator Assistance Grant is available to operators with ten or fewer wells, qualified well pluggers or third parties. The MERP General Assistance Grant is designed for operators with 11 or more wells, qualified well pluggers or third parties. Both grants are collectively referred to as the Grant Program in this notice.

 Subawards under this Grant Program are available on a competitive basis to oil and gas well operators, qualified well pluggers and third-party project managers to plug Marginal Conventional Wells (MCW) defined as a conventional well that produces less than 90 mcf gas per day or 15 barrels of oil per day. Applications will be prioritized based on well scoring criteria to maximize the goals and initiatives of the program. Grant subrecipients must comply with all terms and conditions of the Federal award, including applicable State law, as will be detailed in the grant agreement.

 Applicants can apply to plug MCWs with a maximum total reimbursement amount of $420,000 per application within each application period. The maximum subaward per applicant cannot exceed in aggregate the total eligible funds based on the type of MCW by depth classification, in accordance with MERP guidelines as follows:

 • The maximum subaward cannot exceed $20,000 for every eligible well plugged that is an MCW of a depth of 3,000 feet or less or the actual cost of the qualified well plugger to plug the well, whichever is less.

 • The maximum subaward cannot exceed $35,000 for every eligible well plugged that is an orphan well of a depth of greater than 3,000 feet or the actual cost of the qualified well plugger to plug the well, whichever is less.

 If an applicant plugs all MCW wells listed on the application and does not expend all available funding, the applicant may request approval from the Department to plug additional wells up to the maximum amount of the original grant award.

 Grant applications must be submitted online through the Commonwealth's Electronic Single Application web site, eGrants, at https://grants.pa.gov. Applications will be reviewed and prioritized based on well scoring criteria. The Department's prioritization and application ranking process offers additional layers of risk mitigation, ensuring that funds are allocated to maximize methane reduction while enhancing human health and environmental benefits. The Grant Program will remain open for 60 days.

 The Grantee should comply with all Federal and State audit requirements including: the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996; Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, 2 CFR Part 200 (relating to uniform administrative requirements, cost principles, and audit requirements for Federal awards); and any other applicable law or regulation and any amendment to any other applicable law or regulation that may be enacted or promulgated by the Federal government.

 More detailed information about the grant requirements can be found on the Department's web site at https://www.dep.pa.gov/Business/Energy/OilandGasPrograms/OilandGasMgmt/Pages/Methane-Emission-Reduction-Program-(MERP)-.aspx.

Language Access

 For applicants who are deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind or have a speech disorder, the Pennsylvania Hamilton Relay Service is available by calling (800) 654-5984 (TTD users) or (800) 654-5988 (voice users), and request that the call be relayed to Neil Bakshi at (717) 787-0880.

 ATTENTION: If you speak another language other than English, language assistance services can be made available to you. Call (717) 787-0880.

 ATENCIóN: Si habla otro idioma que no sea el inglés, los servicios de asistencia lingüística pueden estar disponibles para usted. Llame al (717) 787-0880.

 ACHTUNG: Wenn Sie eine andere Sprache als Englisch sprechen, können Ihnen Sprachunterstützungsdienste zur Verfügung gestellt werden. Rufen Sie (717) 772-5719 an.

 Inquiries concerning this notice and requests for more information about this Grant Program should be directed to Amy McMullen, Environmental Group Manager, Department of Environmental Protection, Rachel Carson State Office Building, Bureau of Oil and Gas Planning and Program Management, P.O. Box 8765, Harrisburg, PA 17101-8765, at ammcmullen@pa.gov or (717) 783-9165.

JESSICA SHIRLEY, 
Acting Secretary

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 24-1469. Filed for public inspection October 11, 2024, 9:00 a.m.]


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