Outer Continental Shelf Scientific Committee

Please Note: Terms for the 2012-2014 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Scientific Committee members expired in October 2014. BOEM will allow the OCS Scientific Committee’s two-year charter to expire in March 2016.

The advisory services it had performed will shift to the National Research Council (NRC) Committee on Environmental Science and Assessment for Ocean Energy Management. 
 


Historical Information on the OCS Scientific Committee

From 1975-2015, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and its predecessors received advice for its Environmental Studies Program from a Federal Advisory Committee in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act on issues related to safety, environmental science and policy decisions regarding energy exploration and development activities on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

The Environmental Studies Program, which was authorized by the OCS Land Act as amended (Section 20), was administered by BOEM and covered a wide range of field and laboratory studies in biology, chemistry, and physical oceanography, as well as studies of the social and economic impacts of OCS energy and marine minerals development.

The OCS Scientific Committee (OCS SC) was chartered to advise the Secretary of the Interior, through the director of BOEM, on the feasibility, appropriateness and scientific value of BOEM's OCS Environmental Studies Program.

Members were appointed by the Secretary based on technical skills and geographic representation, and were required to meet the following criteria: scientific competence, reputation within their field of expertise, and ability to address important elements of BOEM’s research and science activities. BOEM's research and science activities span a diverse spectrum of environmental and socioeconomic disciplines pertinent to decision making of the OCS energy and minerals management programs. The Committee was also evenly divided into three sections covering the areas of physical, biological, and social sciences.

Official Committee Records: Past meeting proceedings and other Committee documentation will continue to be available for public review and access https://www.boem.gov/OCS-Scientific-Committee-Meeting-Records/.