Renewed consideration of offshore activity

Paul L. Kelly, Energy and Ocean Policy Consultant and World Oil Senior Editorial Advisor

In a remarkable development, the energy needs of the United States and the financial condition of the state of Florida have prompted a renewed consideration of oil and gas activity off the Florida coast.

As the legislature deliberates this issue, Florida State University and its Institute for Energy Systems, Economics and Sustainability held an oil and gas symposium on Nov. 2 that brought together experts from around the globe to share their informed views on coastal drilling and to look at the challenges of technology, ecology, economics and policy. Outside experts from the US Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service and from Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Norway joined FSU professors to discuss state and federal leasing policies, royalties, Gulf of Mexico geology, and previous oil and gas activity in Florida. The event attracted a large crowd and received considerable media coverage in the state.

A second symposium planned for January will look at sustainable and alternative energy and at oil and gas exploration challenges related to the tourism economy, marine ecology, alternative energy sources and Florida infrastructure.

Florida State University sees its role as serving as an “honest broker,” providing scholarship-derived insight and information, while bringing a greater understanding of the issues to the debate. Stay tuned for further developments in 2010.

Ocean Policy Task Force. Meanwhile, on June 12, 2009, President Barack Obama issued a Memorandum to the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies in which he stated, “In order to better meet our Nation’s stewardship responsibilities for the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, there is established an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force, to be led by the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.”

The president went on to direct the task force to develop a series of recommendations to be completed within 90 days from the date of his memorandum that, broadly speaking, would include steps to restore the health of the oceans and enhance the sustainability of ocean and coastal economies; preserve the nation’s maritime heritage; and enhance its understanding of and capacity to respond to climate change.

In addition, he called on the task force to develop, within 180 days and with appropriate public input, a recommended framework for effective marine special planning. “This framework should be a comprehensive, integrated, ecosystem-based approach that addresses conservation, economic activity, user conflict, and sustainable use of ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources consistent with international law.”

On Sept. 10, the task force issued its draft interim report and then embarked on a series of hearings and listening sessions throughout the coastal United States in order to obtain public input and commentary. Apparently, thousands of letters have been filed in response.

Petroleum industry trade associations, companies and individual employees have met with the task force and filed comments and questions to clarify how this initiative may affect the industry. At a listening session held in New Orleans in October, there was a particularly good opportunity for the industry to provide input. The comment period is now closed, and a final report is imminent.

Coastal and marine spatial planning. One concept contained in the task force report—coastal and marine spatial planning (MSP)—has caused concern in the offshore petroleum industry, as well as other marine industries. The MSP concept is defined on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) website as “a public process of analyzing and allocating the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities in marine areas to achieve ecological, economic, and social objectives that usually have been specified through a political process.” Contributing to industry concern over MSP, spokesmen for some environmental groups have told the media that this concept could be used as a tool to limit the expansion of offshore oil and gas development in the US.

The American Petroleum Institute and the National Ocean Industries Association have been quick to get involved in the issue and ask for clarification of the goals of MSP.

Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions and the Meridian Institute have joined in an effort to better understand the opportunities—and potential obstacles—for stakeholder involvement in MSP. In recent months, they have convened representatives from a variety of ocean industries—including aquaculture, boating, commercial fishing, recreational fishing, oil and gas, renewable energy, shipping and tourism—to discuss the concept, explore the question of what its purpose is, and develop a summary of important concerns of these ocean user groups.

These concerns have been conveyed to the president’s task force along with a number of principles and design criteria that the ocean users’ representatives believe should inform the development of any national framework for marine spatial planning that might be contemplated.

In the Gulf region, it is expected that the Gulf of Mexico Alliance of Governors would be heavily involved in any spatial planning matters, and that the coast would take priority due to its impact on important state issues such as water quality, human health, coastal resilience, habitat restoration and excess nutrients.

THE AUTHOR
	Paul L. Kelly is a consultant on energy and ocean policy and a retired Senior Vice President of Rowan Companies, Inc., where he was responsible for special projects as well as government and industry affairs. He was a member of the US Secretary of the Interior’s Outer Continental Shelf Policy Committee, serving as its chairman from 1994 to 1996. Mr. Kelly holds BA and JD degrees from Yale University.