Request for Scoping Comments
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U. S. Department of the Interior
Minerals Management Service
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT
Request for Scoping Comments
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For Preparation of Environmental
Assessments
For Granting Lease Suspensions on 36
Undeveloped OCS Leases
July 21, 2004
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Agency Action
On February 26, 2004,
the Court in California v. Norton, No. 99-4964 (CW) N.D. Cal.
ordered the Federal Defendants to propose a timetable for completing
their analyses of applications for lease suspensions filed by the
operators of 36 undeveloped leases offshore California, and submitting
consistency determinations to the State of California under the Coastal
Zone Management Act (CZMA). On June 28, 2004, the Court adopted the
proposed timeline which included the time to prepare six environmental
assessments to analyze the environmental impacts of granting the lease
suspension requests.
The MMS action is to
grant, deny, or take no action on each of the operator’s suspension
requests. A suspension is defined in 30 CFR §250.105 as “a granted or directed deferral of the
requirement to produce [Suspension of Production (SOP)] or to conduct
lease holding operations [Suspension of Operations (SOO)]." A suspension
provides an extension of a lease in certain circumstances (see 30 CFR
250.172-175). In certain instances, operators have proposed to conduct
geohazards or other surveys to assist in the preparation of their
revised Exploration Plans. These surveys will be addressed in the EAs
that MMS is preparing and would be conducted after the suspension is
granted. The granting of a suspension will
not authorize any exploration or development and production
operations.
Description of the Suspension Requests
and Location of the 36 Undeveloped Leases
Refer to the
Table
and maps (Santa Maria Basin) (Santa
Barbara Channel) on the following pages.
NEPA Process and
Public Scoping
Under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) an
Environmental Assessment (EA) serves as an information document for
government decision makers and the public. The purpose of an EA is to:
help decision makers base their decision on an understanding of
environmental consequences; identify ways that environmental effects can
be mitigated or avoided; identify alternatives that would avoid or
reduce effects to the environment by requiring changes in the proposal
when feasible; and to disclose to the public the environmental
information and analyses upon which Federal decisions will be based.
Scoping is the process used to
help determine the appropriate content of an EA. Public input is an
important part of the scoping process. The purpose of soliciting input
is to properly identify as many relevant issues, alternatives,
mitigation measures, and analytical tools as possible so they may be
incorporated into the EA. The scoping comments assist in determining the
breadth and depth of the analysis.
Based on the
information received during the initial scoping effort and other
information, such as the location of sensitive natural resources, time
of year, projected oil and gas activity, alternatives to the proposal
are identified that might reduce possible impacts. In addition,
reasonable mitigation measures that could reduce or eliminate possible
impacts are considered for analysis in the EA.
Detailed
information concerning NEPA may be found at
http://ceq.eh.doe.gov/nepa/nepanet.htm. Frequently asked questions
about compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) are
provided at
http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/faqs/nepa/index.html .
MMS’s
Environmental Assessment (EA) Preparation Schedule
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Public Scoping Comments Due: 8/26/2004
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Draft EAs Available
for Public Comment: 11/17/2004
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Draft EAs’ Public Comment Period Closes:
12/16/2004
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MMS Finalizes EAs:
2/13/2005
Submittal of
Scoping Comments
Comments may be sent to
MMS by email or by mail and must be received by MMS no later than
August 26, 2004. All comments should include the name and mailing
address of the person commenting. It is the practice of MMS to make
comments, including names and home addresses of respondents, part of the
public record. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their
home address and/or identity from the record. We will honor such
requests to the extent allowable by law. If you wish for us to withhold
your name and/or address, you must state this prominently at the
beginning of your comments. We will not consider any anonymous comments.
All interested persons,
organizations and agencies wishing to provide scoping comments on the
proposed actions may do so by sending them in time to reach MMS by
August 26, 2004 to the appropriate address below:
By Email:
Suspension-EA@mms.gov
By Mail: Minerals Management
Service
Attn: Suspension – EA Comments
Office of
Environmental Evaluation
770 Paseo Camarillo
Camarillo, CA
93010-6064
The Draft EAs will be
available for public review starting November 17, 2004. Draft EAs
will be mailed to government agencies and elected officials. A digital
copy will be posted on the MMS, Pacific Region homepage (index.htm). Members of the public, who are not able to access the Region’s
website, and want to receive the Draft EAs, need to submit a written
request to MMS at the mailing address given above. Requests for copies
of the Draft EAs should specify whether “paper” or “CD” copy is
preferred.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Questions concerning the Draft EAs should be directed to Mr. Maurice
Hill, Office of Environmental Evaluation, Pacific OCS Region, Minerals
Management Service, 770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo, California
93010-6064; phone 805.389.7815.
Questions concerning the operators’
suspension requests should be directed to Ms. Joan Barminski, Office
Reservoir Evaluation and Production, Pacific OCS Region, Minerals
Management Service, 770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo, California
93010-6064; phone 805.389.7707.
Page content last updated 7/19/2004
Page last published 9/21/2004
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