In 2005 the Venango Conservation District was pleased to include the Orphan Wells Program to their list of programs in the County. Through funding from the Pennsylvania DEP, the District has been able to expand efforts by the Venango PaSEC organization in hunting and identifying orphan wells.

An orphan well is one that has not been registered with the Department of Environmental Protection nor has any identifiable owner/operator. All of these abandoned and orphaned wells were drilled prior to the 1950's before registration was required. These wells become a problem over the years as they seep petroleum into the environment. The area of ground around each well can also become unstable posing a hazard to hikers. Volunteers from the PaSEC group organize to hunt for these wells. They record a GPS reading and mark it. DEP then schedules each well for plugging.