The NewsRoom
Release: #3385  
Date: October 24, 2005

Comments on 2007-2012 Five-year Leasing Plan
Posted on OCS Connect Website

WASHINGTON, DC - The Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service has posted, for public viewing, comments it received regarding the development of its 2007-2012 five-year leasing plan for energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) and accompanying environmental impact statement.

The comments can be viewed on the agency’s OCS Connect website (http://ocsconnect.mms.gov/pcs-public/) by conducting a quick search for comments using the phrase “5-year”.  MMS received about 12,000 comments from the public, environmental groups, the oil and gas industry, congress, and state, local and federal governments.

Issued August 24, 2005, the request for information and comments sought general input from the public on energy development and other economic and environmental issues in the OCS areas.  In accordance with the 2005 Energy Policy Act, comments were also sought on the potential resources available in all areas of the OCS, recognizing that many of these areas are subject to existing moratoria and will not be fully analyzed for possible leasing.

The request for comments was the first step in a two-year process to develop the 2007-2012 leasing plan.  Next MMS will develop a draft proposed program followed by a proposed program and draft EIS. The public will have an opportunity to comment on both documents.

The following is the schedule for the 2007-2012 five-year program:

Date                       Step

August 24, 2005      Solicit comments and information
                              (Federal Register Notice)

Winter 2005             Issue draft proposed program
                              (60-day comment period)

Summer 2006          Issue proposed program and draft EIS
                              (90-day comment period)        

Winter 2007             Issue proposed final program and final EIS
                              (60-day waiting period)           

Spring 2007             Approve five-year program for July 2007-July 2012

The 2007-2012 OCS oil and gas leasing program will be the seventh program prepared since Congress passed the OCS Lands Act in 1978. The Act requires the Secretary of the Interior to prepare and maintain five-year programs for offshore oil and natural gas leasing. The current program runs through June 30, 2007.

MMS, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, oversees 1.76 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf, managing offshore energy and minerals while protecting the human, marine, and coastal environments.  The OCS provides 30 percent of oil and 21 percent of natural gas produced domestically, and sand used for coastal restoration.  MMS collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral revenues from Federal and American Indian lands, and contributes to the Land and Water Conservation Fund and other special use funds, with Fiscal Year 2004 disbursements of approximately $8 billion and more than $143 billion since 1982.

Relevant Web Site:
   MMS Main Website

Media Contact:
   Nicolette Nye   (703) 787-1011

MMS: Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for America
U.S. Department of the Interior
 

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