MMS Requests Comment on GOM Environmental Assessment
On March 25, 2008, the Minerals Management Service requested public comment on an Environmental Assessment for a new lease sale for oil and gas in the Outer Continental Shelf of the Gulf of Mexico. The EA is for Lease Sale 207 in the Western Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Planning Area (WPA) (Lease Sale 207) scheduled for August 2008.

This EA updates an earlier Multisale EIS that MMS prepared for the GOM: Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2007-2012; Western Planning Area Sales 204, 207, 210, 215, and 218; Central Planning Area Sales 205, 206, 208, 213, 216, and 222--Final Environmental Impact Statement; Volumes I and II (Multisale EIS, OCS EIS/EA MMS 2007-018).

The proposed lease sale includes all unleased blocks in the WPA, excluding unleased whole and partial blocks that are part of Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, and whole and partial blocks that lie within the 1.4-nautical mile buffer zone north of the outer continental shelf boundary between the U.S. and Mexico.

The EA concludes that there is no new information about environmental resources or potential impacts that were not considered in the Multisale EIS. MMS determined that a Supplemental EIS is not required and prepared a Finding of No New Significant Impact.

MMS requests public comment on the EA by April 24, 2008.