[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 93 (Monday, May 14, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28401-28402]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-11631]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

[Docket ID No. BSEE-2012-0008; OMB Control Number 1014-0009]


Information Collection Activities: Legacy Data Verification 
Process (LDVP); Submitted for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
Review; Comment Request

ACTION: 60-day notice.

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), BSEE 
is inviting comments on a collection of information that we will submit 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. 
The information collection request (ICR) concerns a renewal to the 
paperwork requirements in a Notice to Lessees and Operators (NTL) 
discussed below.

DATES: You must submit comments by July 13, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods 
listed below.
     Electronically: go to http://www.regulations.gov. In the 
entry titled, Enter Keyword or ID, enter BSEE-2012-0008 then click 
search. Follow the instructions to submit public comments and view all 
related materials. We will post all comments.
     Email [email protected]. Mail or hand-carry comments 
to the Department of the Interior; Bureau of Safety and Environmental 
Enforcement; Regulations Development Branch; Attention: Cheryl Blundon; 
381 Elden Street, MS-4024; Herndon, Virginia 20170-4817. Please 
reference ICR 1014-0009 in your comment and include your name and 
return address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cheryl Blundon, Regulations 
Development Branch at (703) 787-1607 to request additional information 
about this ICR.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Legacy Data Verification Process (LDVP)--NTL (formerly known 
as Historical Well Data Cleanup).
    OMB Control Number: 1014-0009.
    Abstract: The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act, as amended 
(43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq. and 43 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), authorizes the 
Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to prescribe rules and 
regulations necessary for the administration of the leasing provisions 
of the Act related to the mineral resources on the OCS. Such rules and 
regulations will apply to all operations conducted under a lease. 
Operations on the OCS must preserve, protect, and develop oil and 
natural gas resources in a manner that is consistent with the need to 
make such resources available to meet the Nation's energy needs as 
rapidly as possible; to balance orderly energy resource development 
with protection of human, marine, and coastal environments; to ensure 
the public a fair and equitable return on the resources of the OCS; and 
to preserve and maintain free enterprise competition.
    The OCSLA at 43 U.S.C. 1332(6) states that ``operations in the 
[O]uter Continental Shelf should be conducted in a safe manner by well-
trained personnel using technology, precautions, and techniques 
sufficient to prevent or minimize the likelihood of blowouts, loss of 
well control, fires, spillages, physical obstruction to other users of 
the waters or subsoil and seabed, or other occurrences which may cause 
damage to the environment or to property, or endanger life or health.''
    BSEE's Legacy Data Verification Process (LDVP) requests operators 
to supply missing data or corrected data for wells drilled prior to 
January 2000 that do not have an assigned API number. This notice 
announces our intention to request a 3-year extension for this 
information collection.
    The information we collect under this NTL, is missing data for 
wellbores that BSEE has not assigned API numbers and other well data 
discovered as missing while completing the well database cleanup. We 
are not able to manage and utilize data from drilling operations 
accurately without the information for the missing wells. We will use 
the information to identify other well data (e.g., logs, surveys, 
tests) missing from our records, geologically map existing BSEE data to 
the correct wellbore/location, and correctly exchange information with 
the operators and industry. Our geoscientists can use the information 
to evaluate resources for lease sales for fair market value. With 
respect to safety concerns, we believe that there may be anywhere from 
1,500 to 4,500 unidentified completed and abandoned wellbores (bypasses 
and sidetracks), some of which may contain stuck drill pipe or other 
materials. In approving permits and other operations in an area, it is 
important for us to know what may be adjacent to or near the vicinity 
of the activity we are approving to minimize the risk of blowouts, loss 
of well control, and endangerment to life, health, and the environment. 
This is particularly important as, over the years, the number of wells 
drilled constantly

[[Page 28402]]

increases, thereby increasing the risk to adjacent activities if 
operators are not aware of what might be in the area.
    We will protect information respondents submit that is considered 
proprietary under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), its 
implementing regulations (43 CFR part 2), and 30 CFR 250.197, Data and 
information to be made available to the public or for limited 
inspection. No items of a sensitive nature are collected. Responses are 
mandatory.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Description of Respondents: Potential respondents comprise Federal 
OCS oil, gas, and sulphur lessees.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden: The currently 
approved annual reporting burden for this collection is 11,250 hours 
for approximately 4,500 wells, based on:
    (1) 0.5 hours to locate and copy a summary of drilling operations 
(e.g., scout tickets) for each well; and
    (2) 2 hours to retrieve and analyze each well file and retrieve 
other missing data. There are no recordkeeping requirements.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Non-Hour Cost Burden: We have 
identified no paperwork non-hour cost burdens for this collection.
    Public Disclosure Statement: The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) 
provides that an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of 
information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. 
Until OMB approves a collection of information, you are not obligated 
to respond.
    Comments: Before submitting an ICR to OMB, PRA section 
3506(c)(2)(A) requires each agency ``* * * to provide notice * * * and 
otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies 
concerning each proposed collection of information * * *''. Agencies 
must specifically solicit comments to: (a) Evaluate whether the 
collection is necessary or useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) enhance the 
quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (d) minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of 
technology.
    Agencies must also estimate the non-hour paperwork cost burdens to 
respondents or recordkeepers resulting from the collection of 
information. Therefore, if you have other than hour burden costs to 
generate, maintain, and disclose this information, you should comment 
and provide your total capital and startup cost components or annual 
operation, maintenance, and purchase of service components. For further 
information on this burden, refer to 5 CFR 1320.3(b)(1) and (2), or 
contact the Bureau representative listed previously in this notice.
    We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them 
in our submission for OMB approval. As a result of your comments, we 
will make any necessary adjustments to the burden in our submission to 
OMB.
    Public Comment Procedures: Before including your address, phone 
number, email address, or other personal identifying information in 
your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including 
your personal identifying information--may be made publicly available 
at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your 
personal identifying information from public review, we cannot 
guarantee that we will be able to do so.

    Dated: May 4, 2012.
Douglas W. Morris,
Chief, Office of Offshore Regulatory Programs.
[FR Doc. 2012-11631 Filed 5-11-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-VH-P