The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in late October published a revised draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for public comment, in compliance with an order from a U.S. District Court. The draft EIS analyzes the potential environmental effects of a proposed 2022 oil and gas lease sale on the federal submerged lands of Cook Inlet. As of now, no date on the proposed sale has been set for 2022.
The area identified for the potential sale consists of 224 Outer Continental Shelf Blocks toward the northern part of the Inlet and covers 1.09 million acres of seafloor, stretching roughly from Kalgin Island in the north to Augustine Island in the south.
The draft EIS analyzes a range of alternatives to be considered for leasing. It also analyzes the leasing area’s important environmental resources and their uses and identifies robust mitigation measures to be considered in leasing the area. In addition, the draft EIS provides estimates of the greenhouse gas emissions and the social cost of greenhouse gas emissions for the range of alternatives – including those associated with shifts in foreign consumption. BOEM seeks feedback on the approach and methodology for estimating these impacts.
BOEM is planning to hold three virtual meetings next week (all times are Alaska Time):
- Tue, Nov. 16. 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
- Wed, Nov. 17. 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
- Thu, Nov. 18. 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
With the publication of the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register, a 45-day public comment period will conclude at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, December 13th. Comments may be submitted via regulations.gov, the federal government’s official commenting website.
The publication of the draft EIS does not indicate that the Department of the Interior has decided to hold the lease sale; rather, the Department will use the findings to inform its decision whether to hold the lease sale.