| Agency Name: | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management |
| Seal: | BOEM Logo.png |
| Headquarters: | Main Interior Building Washington, D.C. |
| Preceding1: | Minerals Management Service |
| Employees: | N/A |
| Budget: | N/A |
| Chief1 Name: | Elizabeth Klein |
| Chief1 Position: | Director |
| Website: | www.boem.gov |
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior, established in 2010 by Secretarial Order.
On May 19, 2010, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar signed a Secretarial Order dividing the Minerals Management Service (MMS) into three independent entities: BOEM, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue. [1] The most important legislation for BOEM is the Outer continental shelf (OCS) Lands Act to facilitate the federal government’s leasing of its offshore mineral resources and energy resources.
In addition to the OCS Lands Act, the Submerged Lands Act (SLA) of 1953 grants individual states rights to the natural resources of submerged lands from the coastline to no more than 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) into the Atlantic, Pacific, the Arctic Oceans, and the Gulf of Mexico. The only exceptions are Texas and the west coast of Florida, where state jurisdiction extends from the coastline to no more than 3 marine leagues (16.2 km) into the Gulf of Mexico.
BOEM’s stated mission is to “manage development of U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) energy, mineral, and geological resources in an environmentally and economically responsible way.” [2]
The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) is a significant source of oil and gas for the Nation’s energy supply. As of May 1, 2021, BOEM manages about 2,287 active oil and gas leases on approximately 12.1 million OCS acres. [3]
In 2009, the Department of the Interior announced the final regulations for the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Renewable Energy Program, which was authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct). These regulations provide a framework for issuing leases, easements and rights-of-way for OCS activities that support production and transmission of energy from sources other than oil and natural gas.
BOEM is the only federal agency with the authority to lease marine minerals from the OCS, including responding to commercial requests for OCS minerals such as gold, manganese, or other hard minerals. [4]
Carbon sequestration (CS) refers to a process of storing captured carbon dioxide (CO2) that leads to a reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere. Carbon sequestration activities can take many forms. One form of long-term storage is injection of captured CO2 into suitable underground geologic formations. [5]
On November 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was signed into law and gave the Department of the Interior the authority to grant a lease, easement, or right-of-way on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) for long-term sequestration of carbon dioxide that would otherwise go into the atmosphere and contribute to further climate change. BOEM is working with the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) on a draft rule to implement this authority over the OCS CS projects.
BOEM’s environmental program ensures that environmental protection is a foremost and indispensable consideration in BOEM's decision-making. [6]
BOEM uses science and law to inform our environmental analyses, conduct consultations, and design and conduct research. The environmental program informs three major areas that BOEM regulates on the outer continental shelf: oil and gas, renewable energy, and non-energy minerals such as sand and gravel or hard minerals.
The agency's first director, serving from June 2010 to May 2014, was Tommy Beaudreau.[7] The second director was Abigail Ross Hopper, serving from January 2015 to January 2017.[8] From 2017 to 2021, deputy director Walter Cruickshank served as the acting director.
From February 2021 to January 2023, the director was Amanda Lefton.[9] In an announcement with United States Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm on April 27, 2022, Lefton said that her agency would focus on efforts to promote offshore wind projects, saying that BOEM would work to "inspire confidence and demonstrate commitment" for lease planning and calling it her "number-one priority," National Fisherman reported.[10] In January 2023, Lefton announced her resignation, effective January 19.[11]
, the director is Elizabeth Klein.
| Order | Picture | Name | Start date | End date | President(s) served under | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tommy Beaudreau | June 2010 | May 2014 | Barack Obama | ||
| — | Walter Cruickshank (acting) | May 2014 | January 6, 2015 | Barack Obama | ||
| 2 | Abigail Ross Hopper | January 6, 2015 | January 6, 2017 | Barack Obama | ||
| — | Walter Cruickshank (acting) | January 6, 2017 | February 2, 2021 | Barack Obama Donald Trump Joe Biden | ||
| 3 | Amanda Lefton | February 2, 2021 | January 19, 2023 | Joe Biden | ||
| 4 | Elizabeth Klein | January 19, 2023 | Incumbent | Joe Biden |
BOEM keeps records of shipwrecks, to ensure the Nation's important historical sites are protected when offshore activities take place on the OCS. These shipwrecks, particularly when over fifty years old, may be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places,[12] and any new wells or pipelines have to be studied for their potential effect on archaeological sites on the outer continental shelf.[13]
The BOEM maintains a list of shipwrecks and the location.
There were over 100 attacks on ships in the Gulf of Mexico by German U-boats. Several were listed by the MMS and maintained by the BOEM.
The only known German U-boat to be sunk in the Gulf is U-166. After sinking the SS Robert E. Lee the United States Navy patrol craft PC-566 reported hitting and sinking the submarine. This was questioned and the sinking was attributed to a United States Coast Guard Grumman G-44 Widgeon, that reported an attack over 100 miles away, thought to be the U-166. In 2001 the wreckage of U-166 was identified near the wreckage of the Robert E. Lee and in 2014 the record was set straight that PC-566 actually sunk U-166. In 2014 the position, 28.6167°N -135°W was designated a war grave.[21]