In the latest iteration of "let's look like we're doing something," the US Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management have announced that the DOI is "taking steps to assess the conventional and renewable resource potential in the Mid- and South Atlantic." A draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) was released March 28 for public comment and is intended to determine "whether, and if so where, leasing would be appropriate in these areas."

More to the point, the draft PEIS will assess, and potentially green-light, geological and geophysical activities.

photo ship at sea

Seismic contractors are not likely to rush into Atlantic exploration just because they can. (Image courtesy of PGS)

While the DOI's announcement referred to this decision as a "milestone," those in the industry were less ecstatic. Why? On its face, this looks like progress. No oil and gas activity, including G&G activity, has taken place in the US portion of the Atlantic Ocean in decades. It's possible that areas off the East Coast might be analogous to some of the geology offshore North Africa, where major discoveries have occurred.

But while the DOI announcement goes into great detail about the need for G&G studies, it neglects to note that there are no lease sales planned anywhere off the East Coast in the 2012-2017 OCS leasing plan. And while several permits have been filed to carry out G&G work in the area, most of these were filed when the drilling moratorium off the Atlantic coast was temporarily lifted in 2008.

"With the removal of any lease sales from the proposed 2012-2017 Five Year Leasing Plan currently under consideration, the economic or financial incentive to acquire that data and offer it for license has been removed," said Chip Gill, president of the International Association of Geophysical Contractors, in his organization's official response.

Gill also expressed disappointment that the North Atlantic Planning Area was not included in the draft PEIS. "The wind doesn't stop at the New Jersey state boundary, and neither does oil and gas prospectivity," he said, adding that Shell Canada is spending US $1 billion to explore for oil and gas offshore Nova Scotia, just north of the North Atlantic Planning Area.

Currently, DOI Director Ken Salazar is reviewing the comments and is expected to allow surveying to start next year. Oddly, the environmental groups are no happier about the decision than the oil and gas industry, though for different reasons.

"Today's announcement is great for petroleum companies but horrible news for our coastlines and a potentially deadly blow to ocean fisheries and wildlife," Natural Resources Defense Council President Frances Beinecke said in a statement.

It would seem, based on the immediate backlash to the announcement, that the decision is not really "great" for either side.

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