Page 12: of Marine News Magazine (April 2012)

12MNApril 2012INSIGHTSwant to be sure that continues and is strengthened where possible.BSEE was one of the two agencies to succeed theBureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) on Oct. 1, 2011. Why were the roles split out? What role does the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) now have? On Oct. 1, 2011, the Department of the Interior for- mally established BSEE and BOEM to carry out the off- shore energy management and safety and environmental oversight missions that were formerly under the jurisdic- tion of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement. The establishment of BSEE and BOEM marked the completion of the effort to reor- ganize the former Minerals Management Service (MMS). The Deepwater Horizon blowout and resulting oil spill shed light on weaknesses in the federal offshore energy regulatory system, including the potential conflicts in the three missions of MMS: resource management, safety and environmental protection, and revenue collection. BSEE is responsible for safety and environmental over- sight of offshore oil and gas operations, including permit- ting and inspections. Our functions include the develop- ment and enforcement of safety and environmental regu- lations, permitting offshore drilling and production, inspections, oil spill research and response, environmental compliance, and engineering-oriented research. BOEM is responsible for managing the environmental- ly and economically responsible development of the nations offshore resources. Its functions include offshore leasing, resource evaluation, review and administration of oil and gas exploration and development plans, renewable energy development, National Environmental Policy Act analysis, environmental studies, and environmentally-ori- ented research. The maritime industry is concerned about the paceof permitting in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. How muchdoes the safety oversight work emanating from BSEE affect this pace, what can be done ? from industry and/or government ? to accelerate it?In regards to offshore permitting, BSEE will continue to review all applications thoroughly to ensure that our enhanced safety standards are being met. Im committed to rooting out inefficiencies and making the permitting process as straightforward, predictable, and understand- able for industry as possible. It is in our countrys interest to have a robust offshore oil and gas industry, and I'm pleased to see reports of new rigs coming into the Gulf and an industry becoming increas- ingly optimistic about the short and long-term outlook for their region. However, I will not measure success for BSEE by the rate at which we issue permits. Permitting is an essential part of our safety mission and we are obligat- ed to review each permit carefully to ensure that it meets the requirements for safety and environmental protection and resource conservation. We will conduct thorough reviews that ensure that the applicant is meeting all the enhanced safety standards put in place after the Deepwater Horizon, and that they can respond effectively in the event of a worst case scenario. BSEE has worked very hard to help industry better understand the requirements and improve the efficiency of the permit application process. Perhaps most signifi- cantly, BSEE held permit processing workshops, which has helped the quality and thoroughness of applications to steadily improve. We published a permit application com- pleteness checklist to make it clear to industry what infor- mation is required and reduce the frequency with which operators submit incomplete applications. We have estab- lished priorities for reviewing permit applications ? assigning the highest priority to permits for ongoing oper-ations or emergency operations, such as relief wells. We have also allowed authorized users of our online permit application system to track the status of their applications.This answered the call from many operators for greater transparency in our permitting process. As a result of these steps, and the industrys increasing familiarity with the process, permit review times have decreased significantly in the past year. Rigs that have left the Gulf of Mexico are continuing to return, new rigs are being contracted, and we are starting to see a small inventory of unused drilling permits develop. In an effort to continue this transparen- cy and cooperation, we will hold another workshop this spring to discuss permitting and oil spill response plans. BSEE and the U.S. Coast Guard recently inspected an offshore rig headed for Cuban waters. Industry stakeholders and environmentalists are worried about the safety of the rig and the readiness of Cuban authorities to respond in the event of a disas- ter. How did you find the rigs condition? BSEE personnel found that the rig generally conformsto U.S. safety standards, and that the blowout preventer passed the tests performed on it, including the critical stump test. They did find some minor issues regarding