Preparation of an Environmental Assessment for Proposed Lease Sale 184 in the Western Gulf of Mexico (2002)

Riepilogo

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) is using the final environmental impact statement (EIS) for proposed lease sales in the Western Planning Area (WPA) of the Gulf of Mexico OCS (OCS EIS/EA, MMS 98-0008, May 1998) to support decisions for proposed WPA Lease Sale 184 (scheduled for August 2002). This would be the first lease sale under the draft proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program: 2002-2007. The MMS will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) to determine if there could be new significant impacts not fully analyzed in the May 1998 Final EIS. The information on issues and alternatives received in response to the Call for Information and Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS for the draft proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program: 2002-2007 will also be considered in the EA analysis. Preparation of the EA is the first step in the prelease decision process for Sale 184. The analysis in the EA will reexamine the projected activities and potential environmental effects of the proposal and alternatives in consideration of any new information regarding potential impacts and issues that was not available at the time the 1998 Final WPA multisale