The NewsRoom
Release: #3394
Date: November 1, 2005

MMS Extends Comment Period on Proposed Rule
on Environmental Compliance Requirements for Oil and Gas Lessees on OCS

WASHINGTON - The Minerals Management Service has issued a 60-day extension of the comment period on a proposed rule regarding protection of marine mammals and threatened and endangered species on the OCS. The extension will provide the oil and gas industry with additional time to review and prepare comments as it recovers from damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

MMS will now accept comment on the proposed rule through January 6, 2006. Comments were originally due November 7, 2005.

MMS is currently seeking comments on proposed regulations that would require lessees of federal oil and gas leases in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to provide information on how they will meet the requirements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). Originally published to the Federal Register September 6, 2006, the proposed amendments to 30 CFR 250, subpart B- Plans and Information, identify environmental, monitoring, and mitigation information that lessees must submit with plans for exploration and development and production. This proposed rulemaking would require lessees to provide more environmental information concerning threatened or endangered species listed under the ESA and marine mammals protected under the MMPA.

Comments may be submitted electronically through the Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions on the website for submitting comments. Comments may also be emailed to rules.comments@mms.gov (use 1010-AD10 in the subject line) or faxed to 703-787-1093 (identify with 1010-AD10). Comments may also be mailed or hand-carried to MMS at: Department of the Interior; Minerals Management Service; Attention: Rules Processing Team (RPT); 381 Elden Street, MS-4024; Herndon, Virginia 20170-4817. Please reference “Plans and Information – Protection of Marine Mammals and Threatened and Endangered Species - AD10” in your comments.

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, as well as 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 about $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
 

Privacy | Disclaimers | Accessibility | Topic Index | FOIA