OCS oil and gas: an assessment of the Department of the Interior Environmental Studies Program
The Environmental Studies Program for the Development of Offshore Oil and Gas Resources was initiated in 1973 to deal with the leasing of an OCS area off Mississippi-Alabama-Florida (MAFLA). The purpose of the Program is to provide environmental data to support decisions by the Department of the Interior for leasing of outer continental shelf (OCS) tracts for oil and gas exploration and development. It is the Committee's finding that the Program has not been based on an adequate assessment and identification of the scientific research that is required to answer environmental concerns for oil and gas operations. Following an introductory chapter, Chapter 2 deals with problem analysis that should consider the basic technology, its potential impacts on the environment, and the use of that information in policy decisions. Chapter 2 presents the technology and policy aspects of this three-step system. The intermediate step, program design for environmental studies, is presented in Chapter 3. Chapter 4 relates how BLM operates its OCS Environmental Studies Program and how the resulting information is used by DOI.The chapter recommends more efficient ways of implementing the program and of using its output. The resolution of the Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Studies Advisory Committee concerning program rationale is presented in Appendix A, followed by the BLM analysis in response to the resolution in Appendix B. Appendix C cites some lawsuits over OCS oil and gas development. (MCW)
- OSTI ID:
- 6521269
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Studies Advisory Committee annual report to the Secretary, Department of the Interior, Calendar Year 1976
Adequacy of environmental information for outer continental shelf oil and gas decisions: Georges Bank. Final report
Related Subjects
020900 -- Petroleum-- Environmental Aspects
03 NATURAL GAS
030800 -- Natural Gas-- Environmental Aspects
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290300 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Environment
Health
& Safety
294002* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Petroleum
294003 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Natural Gas
COASTAL REGIONS
CONTINENTAL MARGIN
CONTINENTAL SHELF
DATA
DATA ACQUISITION
DATA COMPILATION
DECISION MAKING
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
FINANCING
IMPLEMENTATION
INDUSTRY
INFORMATION
LEASING
MANAGEMENT
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NATURAL GAS INDUSTRY
NUMERICAL DATA
OFFSHORE OPERATIONS
PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
RECOMMENDATIONS
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
RESOURCE ASSESSMENT
RESOURCE POTENTIAL
SOCIAL IMPACT
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
US DOI
US ORGANIZATIONS