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Technology
Assessment and Research
(TA&R)
The BSEE manages research associated with
renewable energy, oil and gas operational safety, and oil
spill response.
The
Technology Assessment and Research (TA&R) Program is the
research element of the 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 two components to the TA&R Program:
In Addition, the BSEE Oil Spill Response
Division manages the OSRR program:
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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.
Environmental Studies Program
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:
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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.
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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.
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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 the Bureau 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:
Economics Division Studies
The
Economics Division periodically contracts external research to support
its analysis of potential policy changes for the Renewable Energy and Oil
and Gas programs. External research offers independent assessment of
existing policies as well as expert guidance on designing possible new
programs. Immediate access to completed external studies sponsored by the
Economics Division can be found on the
Economics Division External Studies webpage.
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