In light of recent concerns over mercury in the waters and sediments of the Gulf of Mexico, the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Advisory Board’s Scientific Committee has formed a subcommittee to evaluate this issue in the context of OCS oil and gas activities in the Gulf.

The OCS Scientific Committee advises the Director of the Minerals Management Service (MMS) on the feasibility, appropriateness, and scientific value of the Environmental Studies Program. The Committee may establish subcommittees to study issues in-depth and to develop recommendations for consideration by the full Committee.

The recently formed Subcommittee on Mercury in the Gulf of Mexico will independently review and evaluate existing scientific information, and provide guidance on what actions the MMS should take regarding this issue. The Subcommittee is composed of current and former members of the OCS Scientific Committee with expertise in marine chemistry and contaminants, biology, oceanography and ecology.

The Subcommittee is now gathering information and met in plenary session with the full OCS Scientific Committee on April 23-25, 2002, in Alexandria, Virginia. The Subcommittee will also attend The Mercury Forum in Mobile, Alabama on May 20-21, 2002. Presentations will be made to brief the full Committee on the activities of the Subcommittee as findings and recommendations are formulated. The Subcommittee’s report is expected to be presented to the Committee Chair by the end of June 2002.

MMS is the federal agency in the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages the nation's oil, natural gas and other mineral resources on the outer continental shelf in federal offshore waters. The agency also collects, accounts for and disburses mineral revenues from federal and Indian leases. These revenues totaled nearly $10 billion in 2001 and more than $120 billion since the agency was created in 1982. Annually, nearly $1 billion from those revenues go into the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the acquisition and development of state and federal park and recreation lands.

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