ederal Register Notice
Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on
Exploratory Drilling in Federal Waters Offshore Santa Barbara County, California
Following is the complete text of the Federal Register Notice published on November
22, 2000, Vol. 65, No. 226, pp. 70361-2.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Minerals Management Service
Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on Exploratory Drilling
Activities in Federal Waters Offshore Santa Barbara County, California
AGENCY: Minerals Management Service
ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) to Prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement and Announcement of Public Scoping Meetings
SUMMARY: In accordance with Section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Minerals Management Service (MMS) is preparing an
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to identify and assess potential impacts and
mitigation measures associated with multiple projects. The projects include the sequential
drilling of 5-8 delineation wells from a single mobile offshore drilling unit on existing
leases in Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) waters in the Santa Maria Basin and
western Santa Barbara Channel. Previously, 28 exploration wells have been drilled in the
area where activities are proposed. The purpose of the proposed drilling is to further
delineate oil and gas resources on leases or units that have previous commercial
discoveries of oil and gas. Delineation wells are a type of exploration well. Notice is
hereby given that the public scoping process has been initiated to prepare an EIS that
will address the impacts of and alternatives to the proposal. The purpose of the scoping
process is to solicit public comment regarding the full spectrum of issues and concerns,
including a suitable range of alternatives, and the nature and extent of potential
environmental impacts and appropriate mitigation measures that should be addressed in the
EIS process. It is anticipated that a draft EIS will be available in Summer 2001.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Questions concerning the draft EIS 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.
Background: Pursuant to the OCS Lands Act, as amended, and the implementing
regulations at 30 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 250.203 (Exploration Plan), the MMS
reviews Exploration Plans (EPs) and revisions to those EPs to decide whether
those plans or revisions should be approved; should be modified to be consistent with the
provisions of the lease, the OCS Lands Act, and the implementing regulations; or should be
disapproved. To meet the agencys responsibilities under the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA), MMS is preparing an EIS that will provide an assessment of the
environmental effects of drilling 5 - 8 delineation wells offshore the Santa Barbara
County coast in Federal waters.
Proposed Action: In accordance with 30 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part
250.110(a)(1) (Suspension of Production or Other Operations), the MMS approved the lease
operators requests for suspension of production or operations and established
milestones for the operators to submit revisions to their existing EPs by September
2001. All of the leases on which drilling could occur have EPs that have been
previously approved by the MMS and granted consistency by the California Coastal
Commission (CCC) according to 15 CFR 930.79. The
approved EPs identify proposed well locations that have received CCC consistency
concurrence but, to date, have not been drilled. Because a
number of years have elapsed since these approvals, the MMS has established milestones for
the operators of the leases to update their previously approved EPs through
revisions. The EIS will address all the proposed delineation drilling activities on several leases. The multi-project activities
will be subject to existing laws, regulations, and other requirements. The activities
include sequential drilling of 5-8 delineation wells by a single mobile offshore drilling
unit. The operators need the information from these wells to identify oil and gas
characteristics, reservoir characteristics, and reservoir extent in order to determine the
location, size, and type of facilities that may be required to develop the resources and
thus could be proposed at a future time.
The delineation drilling would occur on units where there have been commercial oil and
gas discoveries, and where MMS believes that development could occur in the future.
Therefore, the EIS will also include a discussion of the potential impacts of the buildout
of production facilities as part of the cumulative analysis. The cumulative analysis will
also cover other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable activities in the area of the
proposed exploratory drilling. Subsequent to the delineation drilling, detailed
Development and Production Plans (DPPs) would be prepared by the operators for the
development of the leases in the future and are expected to be submitted to the MMS and
subjected to separate NEPA analyses. The DPPs would also be submitted to the
California Coastal Commission to ensure their consistency with the California Coastal
Management Plan.
Alternatives: Alternatives will include (1) the action of drilling 5 - 8
delineation wells on undeveloped leases in the Santa Maria Basin and western Santa Barbara
Channel, and (2) no action. Other possible alternatives that may be considered include
variations on the proposed action and alternatives identified during the scoping process.
Scoping: Scoping is an open process for determining the scope of the EIS and for
identifying significant issues related to the proposed action. Scoping also provides an
opportunity to identify alternatives to the proposed action and appropriate mitigation
measures. All interested persons, organizations and agencies wishing to provide comments,
suggestions, or relevant information on the activities may do so as follows:
- Send input to Minerals Management Service, Attn: Exploratory Activities EIS, Office of
Environmental Evaluation, 770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo, CA 93010-6064;
- Attend and provide comment at the public scoping meetings the MMS will conduct in Santa
Barbara County as follows: a) December 6, 2000, 5:30 p.m. 9:00 p.m. at Fess
Parker's Doubletree Resort, 633 East Cabrillo Blvd., Sierra Madre Room, Santa Barbara,
California; b) January 22, 2001, 5:30 p.m. 9:00 p.m. at Allan Hancock College,
Marian Theatre, Bldg. D, 800 S. College Drive, Santa Maria, California. Further details of the of the meetings will be posted on the
MMS, Pacific Region, homepage at http://www.mms.gov/omm/pacific
and will be advertised in the local media; and
- Email input to ExplorationEIS@mms.gov
A Notice of Availability of the draft EIS for public review and comment will be
announced by the MMS and the Environmental Protection Agency in the
Federal
Register; on the MMS, Pacific Region, homepage; and in the local media. We
anticipate that a draft EIS will be available for review in Summer 2001, and a final EIS
will be completed in Fall 2001. Public hearings will be held in the local area following
release of the draft EIS. Dates and locations are to be determined.
Signed November 17, 2000, by Carolita Kallaur, Associate Director for Offshore
Minerals, Minerals Management Service
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