Minerals Management Service October 16, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The purpose of the proposed Federal action addressed in this DEIS (OCS EIS/EA MMS 2006-060) is to offer for lease areas in the Chukchi Sea Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) that might contain economically recoverable oil and gas resources. This lease sale would provide qualified bidders the opportunity to bid on certain blocks in the Chukchi Sea OCS to gain conditional rights to explore, develop, and produce oil and natural gas. This DEIS is the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis to enable the Minerals Management Service (MMS) to make informed decisions on the configuration of the lease sale and the applicable mitigation measures. In the DEIS, the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental impacts of the sale, including estimated exploration and development and production activities related to the sale, on the physical, biological, and human environments in the Chukchi Sea area are analyzed. The DEIS also provides NEPA evaluation for exploration activities in the Chukchi Sea, including seismic survey geophysical permitting (30 CFR 251), ancillary activities (30 CFR 250.207), and exploration plans (30 CFR 250.214). In addition, the DEIS will provide NEPA documentation for the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service's (NMFS) possible issuance of Incidental Harassment Authorizations to the seismic-survey industry to take marine mammals by harassment, incidental to conducting prelease and ancillary on-lease oil and gas seismic surveys in the Chukchi Sea. To address its NEPA responsibilities, the NMFS agreed to become a cooperating agency (as that term is defined in 40 CFR 1501.6) and proposes to adopt the DEIS as authorized by 40 CFR 1506.3 as its own NEPA statement.