Oil Drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf
The Minerals Management Service of the Department of the Interior defines the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) as lands and soil submerged under the ocean, beginning at the end of state jurisdiction and continuing to the seaward extent of federal jurisdiction. The Outer Continental Shelf generally begins 3-9 nautical miles from the shore and continues out to 200 nautical miles from shore.
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Organization
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The OCS has been divided into four regions for the purpose of leasing oil and other mineral rights--the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, the Atlantic OCS Region, the Pacific OCS Region, and the Alaska OCS Region.
History
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Oil drilling on most of the Outer Continental Shelf was banned by an executive order signed in 1990 by President Bush I. President Bush II lifted this executive order in July of 2008. Oil drilling was also blocked by a Congressional moratorium that was allowed to expire in September 2008.
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Current Status
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Oil drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf currently takes place only in some parts of the Alaska OCS Region and the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, where oil drilling is allowed off Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana. No Outer Continental Shelf oil drilling is allowed in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico OCS near Florida.
Latest Developments
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The high and volatile price of oil over the last few years has led to an effort to open more areas of the Outer Continental Shelf to oil drilling. In March, 2010, President Obama outlined a plan to allow oil drilling in the Atlantic OCS Region. Oil drilling would be permitted on 2.9 million acres off the coast of Virginia. The government will conduct a lease of the mineral rights sometime before 2011.
Potential of Outer Continental Shelf
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In 2006 the Minerals Management Service conducted a review of the oil and gas resource potential of the entire Outer Continental Shelf area. The agency determined that the mean estimate of the undiscovered technically recoverable resources on the Outer Continental Shelf were 85.9 billion barrels of oil and 419.9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit oil rig at sunset image by Alan James from Fotolia.com
