OCS Scientific Committee
1999 Meeting Summary - Coastal Marine Institutes Session
Mr. Jim Cimato, Oceanographer, Environmental Studies Branch,
stated that the MMS Coastal Marine Institute (CMI) initiative was proposed in 1991 as an
MMS-State partnership to strengthen relationships with coastal states where OCS oil and
gas activities take place, and to improve the information flow to the affected States and
the public. It accomplishes this by using State institutions of higher education to
conduct research on issues of mutual concern to both the State and MMS. This research is
focused on environmental and socioeconomic aspects of OCS oil and gas and marine mineral
development activities. Through the CMI's, increasing numbers of students and faculty are
engaging in OCS related research, developing new skills, and developing new information
and approaches to solving management issues.
In recognition of the mutual need for critical scientific information for resource
management decisions, the CMI program leverages MMS funds with State funds (one-to-one
matching is required) so that more research can be done than if MMS funded all the work
itself. The first cooperative agreement under the CMI program was signed in 1992 with the State of Louisiana and Louisiana
State University (LSU). A second cooperative agreement was signed with the State of Alaska and the University
of Alaska in 1993. A third agreement was signed with the University of California at Santa Barbara (UCSB) in 1994. The
cooperative agreements with LSU and the University of Alaska have recently been renewed
for another 5 years. Renewal of the cooperative agreement with UCSB is up for
consideration in FY 2000. Approximately 20% of the Environmental Studies Program budget is
allocated to research conducted through the CMI's.
