Ladera Ranch CA Poets Park Playground Built Over 65-Year-Old Exxon Mobil Oil Well That Was Short Plugged in July 2001 During DMB Ladera Re-Abandonment, They Knew.  Oil wells really never die, though, Poets Park Ladera Ranch CA is a hell of a place to build a kids playground next to a 65 year old oil well. The Exxon Mobiloil well under Poets Park in Ladera Ranch CA was drilled down 8,365 feet in 1961 and capped in 1962, but during the July 2001 re-abandonment by DMB Ladera LLC only 351 feet was filled with mud and re-capped, WTH? Under California regulations (managed by CalGEM ), a well undergoing official plugging and abandonment is legally required to be filled with stable, heavy drilling mud to prevent structural collapse and fluid migration. At a standard mud weight of 10 pounds per gallon (ppg), the bottom pressure would be 4,350 psi. Under California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) regulations , plugging a deep well at only 351 feet leaving over 8,000 feet of unse...