Score contribution per author:
α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count
The United States may have more than 1 million abandoned oil and gas wells that were never properly decommissioned (plugged) and that may be leaking harmful liquids and gases. Exploiting the quasi-random assignment of well plugging in a large county in Pennsylvania, we find that over half a century—and in some cases over a century—the two acres around unplugged wells had roughly half as much building as around plugged wells. Further analysis suggests less local investment rather than shifting within a locality. Forgone investment, in turn, depressed property values by 12%.