[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 234 (Friday, December 5, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64399-64401]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-31944]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Marine Transportation of Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) 
Crude Oil Produced Offshore California

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Proposed Notice to Lessees and Operators (NTL).

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SUMMARY: MMS proposes to issue an NTL concerning information 
requirements on marine transportation of OCS crude oil produced 
offshore California. MMS recognizes that the State of California and 
its localities have concerns about potential impacts on the environment 
from the transportation of such oil. The proposed NTL would assist 
Federal lessees and operators and State and local governments in 
meeting their responsibilities and addressing their concerns in this 
area.

DATES: MMS will consider all comments received by February 3, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Mail or hand-carry comments to MMS Pacific Region; 770 Paseo 
Camarillo; Camarillo, CA 93010; Attention: E. Aronson. E-mail comments 
to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Aronson at 805-389-7511 or e-mail to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 17, 1996, Deputy Secretary of the 
Interior John Garamendi issued a Policy Directive to MMS, which 
provides in pertinent part that:
    The policies of the State of California and the county of Santa 
Barbara prefer that oil and gas production, including offshore 
resources, be transported by onshore pipeline, rather than by offshore 
tanker, whenever pipelines are economically and technically feasible.
    The Minerals Management Service (MMS) regulates activities which 
occur within OCS lease boundaries, and generally up to the point of 
landfall.
    The MMS policies should particularly attempt to ensure that new 
and, where appropriate, amended Development and Production Plans 
adequately reflect the principle that transportation of OCS crude be 
consistent with State and local policies.

Statutory Authority

    The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), as amended, 43 
U.S.C. 1331 et seq., provides the Secretary of the Interior with broad 
authority relating to the development and production of mineral 
resources of the OCS. The Secretary is required to provide for the 
suspension or temporary prohibition of activities if a threat of 
serious, irreparable, or immediate harm or damage to the marine, 
coastal, or human environment exists. The Secretary may also take 
action to cancel a lease if continued activity under it would probably 
cause serious harm to such environments and the threat of such harm 
will not decrease to an acceptable level in a reasonable period of 
time. 43 U.S.C. 1334(a). The Secretary may also disapprove or require 
modification of a new Development and Production Plan (DPP) if he 
determines that the lessee has failed to make adequate provision in 
such plan for safe operations on the lease area or for protection of 
the marine, coastal or human environment. 43 U.S.C. 1351(h)(1). To 
carry out these responsibilities, MMS must monitor those activities 
proximately related to the development and production of oil and gas 
resources on the OCS and safeguard against activities that may threaten 
the environment.
    Through the OCSLA, the Congress has also recognized the OCS 
activities may have significant impacts on the States. The OCSLA 
emphasizes that State and local governments whose interests are 
affected by activities on the OCS are entitled to participate, to the 
extent consistent with the national interest, in the policy and 
planning decisions made by the Federal Government relating to 
exploration for, and development and production of, minerals located in 
the OCS. 43 U.S.C. 1332(4)(C). Furthermore, the rights and 
responsibilities of all States and, where appropriate, local 
governments, to preserve and protect their marine, human, and coastal 
environments through such means as regulation of land, air, and water 
uses, of safety, and of related development and activity should be 
considered and recognized. 43 U.S.C. 1332(5).
    MMS performs its statutory responsibilities with respect to 
development activities principally through the approval and periodic 
review of DPP's. 43 U.S.C. 1351; 30 CFR 250.34. The lessee or operator 
must

[[Page 64400]]

provide a wide range of information that enables the MMS Regional 
Supervisor to take action on the plan. This includes assessing the 
effects on the environment expected as a result of implementing the 
plan, identifying specific and cumulative impacts that may occur both 
onshore and offshore, and the measures proposed to mitigate these 
impacts.\1\
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    \1\ 30 CFR 250.34(b)(11).
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    States that have coastal management programs approved by the 
Secretary of Commerce under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 
(CZMA), 16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq., as well as their local governments, 
play a critical role in the review of both new and revised DPP's, 
primarily through the Federal consistency section of the CZMA. 16 
U.S.C. 1456. The part of the consistency section dealing with OCS 
exploration plans and DPP's specifies the authorities and 
responsibilities of Federal lessees, the Secretary of the Interior, and 
the coastal States affected by OCS operations. 16 U.S.C. 1456(c)(3)(B).
    This OCS-specific provision of the CZMA requires that any person 
who submits a DPP to the Secretary of the Interior under the OCSLA 
shall attach to the plan a certification that each activity described 
in the plan which affects the land, water, or natural resources of the 
State's coastal zone complies with the enforceable policies of the 
State's management program, and will be carried out in a manner 
consistent with that program. Generally, under this provision and under 
section 25(d) of the OCSLA (43 U.S.C. 1351(d)), the Secretary of the 
Interior may not grant a license or permit for any such activity unless 
the State concurs with the consistency certification attached to the 
DPP. Further, under section 25(h)(1)(B) of the OCSLA (43 U.S.C. 
1351(h)(1)(B)), the Secretary shall disapprove the entire DPP if the 
State does not concur with the certification. Section 25(h)(1) of the 
OCSLA also provides that any modification to a DPP required by the 
Secretary, involving activities for which a Federal license or permit 
is required and that affect coastal zone resources, must receive 
concurrence of the certification by the affected State.\2\
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    \2\ Procedures to implement the CZMA consistency certification 
section are set forth generally in 15 CFR part 930. The OCS-specific 
provisions regarding new or amended DPP's are processed in 
accordance with Subpart E of those regulations (15 CFR 930.70 et 
seq.).
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Conclusion

    MMS strongly supports the right of California to exercise its 
Federal consistency authorities under the CZMA and believes that 
consistency is an important tool for the State and its local 
governments to address, among other factors, the marine transportation 
component of DDP's. MMS encourages California to review the enforceable 
marine transportation policies in its coastal management program. The 
State should determine whether such policies: (1) Meet the definition 
of ``enforceable policy'' in section 304(6a) of the CZMA; (2) are of 
sufficient clarity and specificity to make consistency determinations 
understandable; and (3) incorporate, to the extent consistent with 
State law and the CZMA, the marine transportation policies of local 
governments.
    The MMS Pacific OCS Region recognizes that the marine 
transportation of OCS crude oil may cause significant impacts on the 
marine, coastal, and human environments and contribute to the 
cumulative environmental risks of an OCS development project. To 
respond to the level of concern regarding marine transportation of OCS 
crude in California, to reaffirm the agency's commitment to strong 
coastal State and local involvement in OCS decisions, and to implement 
Deputy Secretary Garamendi's Policy Directive regarding Federal support 
of State and local policies with respect to the transportation of 
Pacific OCS crude oil, the MMS Pacific OCS Region adopts the following 
procedures for addressing new DPP's and proposed changes in the marine 
transportation component of existing DPP's for leases offshore 
California.

COMMENTS INVITED: The proposed NTL is designed to assist Federal 
lessees and operators and State and local governments in meeting their 
responsibilities and concerns regarding marine transportation of 
Federal OCS crude oil produced offshore California. Comments on the 
proposed NTL are invited.

    Dated: December 1, 1997.
J. Lisle Reed,
Regional Director, Pacific OCS Region, Minerals Management Service.

United States Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service, 
Pacific OCS Region

Proposed Notice to Lessees and Operators of Federal Oil and Gas Leases, 
Pacific OCS Region

NTL 97-----------------------------------------------------------------

Effective Date:--------------------------------------------------------

Lessee Responsibilities for Information on the marine 
Transportation of Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Crude Oil 
Produced Offshore California

    In General: The Marine transportation of OCS minerals is an 
activity that the Secretary of the Interior has determined must be 
described in detail in a Development and Production Plan (DPP). As 
such, it is an activity that requires the approval of the Secretary 
and the concurrence of the State with the certification of federal 
consistency. Proposed changes in the marine transportation component 
of a DPP may require a revision to an approved DPP, and such 
revision is also subject to Secretarial approval (delegated to the 
Regional Supervisor). This revision would need the concurrence of 
the State with the required certification of Federal consistency 
unless it is overridden on appeal to the Secretary of Commerce as 
authorized by section 307(c)(3)(B)(iii) of the Coastal Zone 
Management Act (CZMA).
    New DPP's: To address the concerns of California State and local 
governments about potential significant effects of oil spills, 
particularly those from tankering activity, in the State's sensitive 
marine ecosystem, lessees or operators preparing new DPP's should 
pay special attention to the marine transportation component of 
their plans. Such lessees and operators are advised to develop plans 
to transport the OCS minerals in a manner that is consistent with 
the enforceable marine transportation policies of the State's CZM 
program.
    Specifically, the procedures of 30 CFR 250.34 shall be followed 
in the preparation and submission of a new DPP, including the 
requirement for certification of coastal zone consistency as 
provided in 15 CFR part 930. Concurrence by California with the 
certification is a necessary condition for approval of the new DPP 
by the Regional Supervisor unless the Secretary of Commerce makes 
the finding authorized by section 307(c)(3)(B)(iii) of the CZMA.
    Revised DPP's: The conditions and procedures under which 
revisions to existing DPP's are required are generally provided for 
in sections 25(h)(3) and 25(i) of the OCSLA and implemented in MMS' 
regulations at 30 CFR 250.34(q). Based on those authorities, the 
Regional Supervisor will conduct periodic reviews of existing DPP's 
based on changes in information and onshore or offshore conditions 
affecting or affected by the DPP activities. The Regional Supervisor 
will pay particular attention to any change in the marine 
transportation component of the DPP and, specifically, to tankering 
activity. If a lessee or operator acting under an approved DPP 
anticipates any change in the mode, manner, or degree of marine 
transportation of OCS crude activity described in the plan, the 
lessee or operator shall provide information related to such changes 
to the Regional Supervisor.
    Based on the Regional Supervisor's periodic review or the lessee 
or operator's notification, the Regional Supervisor will notify 
appropriate State and local officials about such changes and provide 
to the State and local officials copies of the information submitted 
by the lessee or operator. If the Regional Supervisor determines 
that the proposed change in activity requires a revision to the DPP, 
the Regional Supervisor will order a revision to the DPP. If the 
Regional Supervisor determines that a proposed revision either 
ordered by the

[[Page 64401]]

Regional Supervisor or initiated by the operator could result in 
significant change to previously identified and evaluated impacts or 
to one not previously identified or evaluated, the proposed revision 
shall be subject to all of the procedures contained in 30 CFR 
250.34, including the requirement, under 250.34(b)(13), that a 
certification of coastal zone consistency be submitted with the 
revision. The Regional Supervisor may not approve the revision 
unless the State concurs with the certification, or the Secretary of 
Commerce makes the finding authorized by section 307(c)(3)(B)(iii) 
of the CZMA. The Regional Supervisor shall prepare the appropriate 
environmental documentation under the National Environmental Policy 
Act for the decision to approve, require further modifications to, 
or disapprove revisions to DPP's.
    This notice is provided to assist lessees and operators in 
planning the development of the Pacific OCS leases. Questions 
concerning this information should be directed to the Regional 
Supervisor for Development, Operations, and Safety at (805) 389-
7560.
    The collection of information referred to in this notice 
provides clarification, description, or interpretation of 
requirements contained in 30 CFR Part 250, Subpart B. The Office of 
Management and Budget has approved the collection of information 
required by these regulations and assigned OMB Control Number 1010-
0049. This notice does not impose additional information collection 
requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

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Regional Supervisor, Office of Development, Operations, and Safety, 
Pacific OCS Region, Minerals Management Service.

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Date

[FR Doc. 97-31944 Filed 12-4-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-M