MMS to Hold Combined Workshops on the National Environmental Policy Act and Interim Notice to Lessees and Operators

U.S. Department of the Interior
Minerals Management Service
Gulf of Mexico OCS Region

FOR RELEASE:	May 2000

MMS to Hold Combined Workshops
on the National Environmental Policy Act and
Interim Notice to Lessees and Operators

The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service will hold workshops covering two important aspects of MMS’s regulatory review process. The combined workshops will focus on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance and on preparing exploration and development plans under the interim Notice to Lessees and Operators (NTL 2000-G10). The workshops will be held June 13 and 15 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in New Orleans and Houston:

June 13, 2000	June 15, 2000
Minerals Management Service	Houston Airport Marriott
1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard	18700 Kennedy Boulevard
New Orleans, LA 70123	Houston, TX 77032
(504) 736-2540	(281) 443-2310

First, MMS will present an overview of NEPA, the Nation’s basic charter for environmental protection. The presentation will explain how MMS complies with the requirements of NEPA, including the preparation of environmental impact statements (EIS’s), environmental assessments (EA’s), and categorical exclusion reviews (CER’s). Topics will include the following:

5-Year Program EIS
Multisale Lease Sale EIS’s
Lease Sale EA’s
Site-specific EIS’s (e.g., Destin Dome 56 Unit)
Supplemental EIS’s
Programmatic EA’s (e.g., Deepwater EA, G&G EA)
Site-specific EA’s (including deepwater strategy)
CER’s
Questions and Answers

Second, MMS will present an overview of the exploration and development plans process including the requirements in the Interim Notice to Lessees and Operators that provide revised guidelines on how to prepare offshore oil and gas exploration and development plans. This guidance becomes effective on May 30, 2000. Topics will include the following:

General Information
Geological and Geophysical Information
Air Quality Information
Discharge Information
Biological Information
Oil Spill Information
Coastal Zone Management Information
Questions and Answers

Questions on the workshop related to NEPA can be directed to Mr. Dennis Chew (504-736-2793), questions on the plans process can be directed to Mr. Mike Tolbert (504-736-2867), and questions on the workshop logistics can be directed to Ms. Janet Diaz (504-736-2540).

The MMS is the Federal agency that manages the Nation’s oil, natural gas, and other mineral resources on the OCS; and collects, accounts for, and disburses about $4 billion in yearly revenues from offshore Federal mineral leases and from onshore mineral leases on Federal and American Indian lands.

-MMS-GOM-

MMS Internet website address: http://www.mms.gov