Sand and Gravel Program

Loss of sand from the Nation’s beaches, dunes, and barrier islands is a serious problem that affects both the coastal environment and the economy. For example, Louisiana, which has the highest coastal erosion rate in the country, loses an average of 100 square km of land from its coast each year. Beach nourishment and other coastal restoration projects are addressing this problem, and sand from the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) is often used to stem this erosion.

To date, the Bureau has conveyed rights to about 56 million cubic yards of OCS sand for 29 coastal restoration projects in 5 states. These projects have resulted in the restoration of 167 miles of the Nation’s coastline, protecting billions of dollars of infrastructure as well as important ecological habitat. Some of these projects were done on an emergency basis, where immanent breaching of barrier islands was prevented by the rapid placement of OCS sand. Most of these projects used sand that was previously identified by the Bureau through its cooperative sand evaluation program with coastal states.

The Bureau uses two types of lease conveyances for sand and gravel and other non-energy minerals from the OCS. These are by a non-competitive negotiated agreement, which can only be used for obtaining sand and gavel for public works projects funded in part or whole by a federal, state, or local government agency, and by a competitive lease sale in which any qualified person may submit a bid. In addition to sand and gravel, the Bureau MMP has also responded to such diverse lease requests as salt from the Atlantic OCS and metallic ores from the Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

The Marine Minerals Program (MMP) historically implemented OCSLA 8(k) authority through 3 main functions:

1. preparing non-competitive leases and Memoranda of Agreements (MOAs),

2. completing environmental studies in support of leasing, and

3. managing and coordinating cooperative agreements, task forces, and other working groups with State and federal agencies. Recent budget restraints have forced the bureau to refocus our efforts to ensuring the timely analysis of OCS leasing requests and requiring the requested environmental information be provided by the lessee.