BOEM closes sale comment period

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has closed the public comment period for a draft environmental impact statement for a Cook Inlet oil and gas lease sale, proposed to be held in June 2017 as part of the federal government’s current five-year outer continental shelf lease sale program. The lease sale applies to federal waters of the lower Cook Inlet, rather than state waters of the upper Cook Inlet where operating oil and gas fields are located.

The Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council has expressed its disappointment that BOEM has turned down a request to extend the comment period beyond 45 days. In a Sept. 6 release CIRCAC said that there had been multiple requests for a comment period extension, especially given the fact that the comment period encompassed a time of year during which fishermen with concerns about the proposed sale are busy fishing.

“We are disappointed that BOEM is not ensuring that they hear from those Alaskans with the most knowledge of Cook Inlet resources and who have the most at stake,” said CIRCAC Executive Director Michael Munger. “By turning down rational requests for a reasonable extension, BOEM either does not care to receive that input or is under pressure to rush this forward on their timeline; neither of which is acceptable.”

Previous federal Cook Inlet lease sales in 1982 and 2004 drew no bidders, while two proposed sales were cancelled in 2009 and 2011 due to lack of industry interest. The lower Cook Inlet region has promising petroleum geology, including known oil source rocks. But the region has seen little exploratory drilling, probably because of high drilling costs and uncertainties over the quality of potential oil and gas reservoir rock units.

- ALAN BAILEY