The Offshore Energy and Minerals Management Program (OEMM) manages research associated with renewable energy, oil and gas operational safety, and oil spill response. Additionally, OEMM administers Ohmsett – The National Oil Spill Response and Renewable Energy Test Facility, located in Leonardo, New Jersey. Ohmsett provides oil spill response testing, training, and research opportunities to government, industry, academia, and private organizations on a reimbursable basis. Ohmsett is also developing the capability to test renewable energy wave and current systems. (1.17 MB PDF)

The Technology Assessment and Research (TA&R) Program is the research element of the MMS regulatory program. The objective of the TA&R Program is: “To promote new technology and safety through the funding of collective research with industry, academia, and other government agencies and disseminate findings through a variety of public forums such as workshops, conferences, publications, and the internet”. There are three components to the TA&R Program:

	Renewable Energy Research (REnR) - The REnR program addresses technology and engineering issues associated with renewable energy projects in the OCS.
	Operational Safety and Engineering Research (OSER) – The OSER program activities address technological issues associated with the complete spectrum of  oil and gas operations ranging from the drilling of exploratory wells to the removal and decommissioning of facilities.
	Oil Spill Response Research (OSRR) – The OSRR program activities cover a wide spectrum of oil spill response issues to improve the knowledge and technologies used for the detection, containment and cleanup of oil spills that may occur on the OCS.

The Environmental Studies Program (ESP) conducts research and synthesizes available environmental and social and economic science information to support decision-making related to development of offshore energy and mineral resources. The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (286.05 KB PDF), as amended, established policy for the management of the OCS energy and minerals and for the protection of marine and coastal environments. Section 20 of the Act authorizes the ESP and establishes three general goals for the program:

	To establish the information needed for assessment and management of environmental impacts on the human, marine, and coastal environments of the OCS and the potentially affected coastal areas.
	To predict impacts on the marine biota which may result from chronic, low level pollution or large spills associated with OCS production, from drilling fluids and cuttings discharges, pipeline emplacement, or onshore facilities.
	To monitor human, marine, and coastal environments to provide time series and data trend information for identification of significant changes in the quality and productivity of these environments, and to identify the causes of these changes.

The ESP carries out research in support of the Renewable Energy Program, the Oil and Gas Program, and the Marine Minerals Program.  The applied research conducted through the ESP contributes to management of OCS activities from the earliest stage of OCS planning through the final removal of the OCS structure at the end of its productive life.  Some of the dominant research areas that we are currently focusing on include: deep sea ecology (specifically in the Gulf of Mexico); marine mammal studies (Gulf of Mexico & Alaska); fates and effects of OCS discharges (this includes state of the art studies of ocean currents in Gulf of Mexico, Pacific, Alaska and field and laboratory effects studies; effects of noise on mammals and fishes); sociological and cultural effects (Alaska and Gulf of Mexico).

Immediate access to completed ESP reports can be found in our Environmental Studies Program Information System, ESPIS.

Each MMS Regional Office coordinates a regional component of the Environmental Studies Program.  Environmental studies in the Atlantic are currently overseen by the Gulf of Mexico Region. Here is a listing directing you to ESP Studies coordinated by our regional offices:
 

	Alaska Environmetal Studies
	Gulf of Mexico Environmental Studies
	Pacific Environmental Studies