MMS working on Beaufort, Chukchi EIS

The U.S. Minerals Management Service has started to evaluate environmental issues associated with planned future lease sales in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas, as part of the preparation of an environmental impact statement for the lease sales, MMS announced Jan. 16. The EIS will “focus on potential environmental effects of the sales from exploration, development and production of the area proposed for leasing,” MMS said.

“MMS will continue to work closely with the State of Alaska and local communities throughout the EIS process to ensure the document evaluates the potential impacts of the proposed sales,” said MMS Alaska OCS Regional Director John Goll.

The new EIS comes as part of the required environmental process under the National Environmental Policy Act for the 2007 to 2012 five-year outer continental shelf lease sale program. The EIS will apply to Beaufort Sea sales 209 and 217, planned for 2009 and 2011, and to Chukchi Sea sales 212 and sale 221, planned for 2010 and 2012. Another EIS issued in May 2007 specifically applied to Chukchi Sea lease sale 193, to be held on Feb. 6 this year.

MMS held scoping meetings and tribal government-to-government meetings for the new EIS between September and November 2007. The agency will now use information gathered during those meetings to develop deferral alternatives and mitigation measures that will be evaluated in the EIS.

In August MMS said that it was preparing a single EIS for all four Beaufort and Chukchi sales in the five-year program, but that it would also make a consistency determination for each sale individually.

“The public will have opportunity to comment on each individual sale proposal,” MMS said.

—Alan Bailey