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BOEMRE Begins Environmental Reviews for
Proposed 2012-2017 Gulf of Mexico Lease Sales
Multi-Sale EIS to Inform Decisions
Regarding Offshore Energy Leasing
NEW ORLEANS
– The Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today announced that
it will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for proposed
oil and gas lease sales in the Western and Central Planning Areas of
the Gulf of Mexico, off the coasts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi
and Alabama, for the 2012 to 2017, 5-year oil and gas leasing
program.
The notice, published in the Federal Register
and available through their website today at:
http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/public-inspection/index.html,
also announced the
start of the scoping process.
“This important step in the
offshore resource evaluation and development process will help
ensure that all interests and concerns regarding oil and gas
leasing, exploration, development and production from proposed sales
are appropriately considered,” said BOEMRE Director Michael R.
Bromwich. “Every comment will be analyzed and considered as we
continue to prepare for the next 5-year program.”
BOEMRE is proposing to prepare a
single EIS (multi-sale EIS) for all proposed 2012-2017 Central and
Western Planning Area sales. As part of the scoping process,
federal, state and local government agencies and other interested
parties can submit comments that will assist BOEMRE in determining
significant issues and alternatives to be analyzed in the multi-sale
EIS. The multi-sale EIS is one step in a
multi-tiered environmental review process that goes from the
planning phase through the permitting phase.
BOEMRE will be holding public
scoping meetings in Houston, New Orleans and Mobile to collect
public comments. These scoping meetings will be held in combination
with the scoping meetings for the preparation of the overall
Programmatic EIS on the 5-Year OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program for
2012-2017.
The meetings are scheduled as
follows:
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Tuesday, February
15, 2011, at 1:00 p.m. CST: |
Houston
Airport Marriott at George Bush Intercontinental, 18700 John F.
Kennedy Blvd. Houston, Texas |
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Wednesday,
February 16, 2011, at 1:00 p.m. CST: |
New
Orleans Airport Hilton, 901 Airline Dr., New Orleans, Louisiana |
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Thursday, February
17, 2011, at 1:00 p.m. CST: |
5 Rivers Alabama’s Delta Resource Center, 30945 Five Rivers Blvd.,
Mobile, Alabama |
Written comments should be
labeled “Comments on the Multi-sale EIS” and delivered to:
Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management, Regulation and Enforcement
Gulf of Mexico Region
Gary D. Goeke, MS 5410
1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard
New Orleans, Louisiana
70123-2394.
In addition, comments may be e-mailed to BOEMRE at
MultisaleEIS@BOEMRE.gov.Contact:
BOEMRE
Public Affairs - Gulf
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