Interior postpones OCS scoping meetings

Citing concerns raised by the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said June 30 that the department is postponing public scoping meetings for the environmental impact statement for the 2012-17 outer continental shelf oil and gas leasing program.

In early April when Interior published a notice of intent to prepare an EIS for the 2012-17 OCS oil and gas leasing program (Mid- and South Atlantic; Western, Central and a portion of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico; and the Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea and Cook Inlet), it scheduled public comments to close June 30; public scoping meetings were to be held in June and early July.

Interior’s focus changed on April 20 when the Deepwater Horizon, drilling for BP in the Gulf of Mexico, blew up — killing 11 workers — and subsequently sank; although BP is capturing some of the oil, the spill has not been contained.

In addition to postponing the scoping meetings until later in the year, Interior said there will be an additional public comment period.

Comments received during the public comment period that closed June 30 will be considered as part of the scoping process, the department said, along with comments received in a new public comment period which will be announced later in the year along with dates and locations for scoping meetings.

Salazar said postponement of the scoping meetings was based on the need to proceed cautiously on the outer continental shelf and to review safety and environmental issues associated with offshore drilling.

“Offshore oil and gas production will remain an important component of our nation’s energy portfolio as we transition to a clean energy economy, but we must ensure that decisions about development are based on safe operations, ensuring protection of the environment, using the best science, and engaging in an open and transparent process,” he said.

“We remain focused on responding to the BP oil spill and implementing strong reforms that are raising the bar for the oil and gas industry,” said Michael Bromwich, director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Regulation and Enforcement — formerly the Minerals Management Service. “At the appropriate time, we will begin the process of engaging the public, conducting environmental analysis and looking ahead to where and how to responsibly develop oil and gas resources under the next five-year program.”

—Kristen Nelson