This week, the U.S. House is planning to vote on a resolution that would limit the use of archaeological surveys for offshore energy projects. We need you to tell your representative to oppose this short-sighted resolution!
S.J.11 would revoke a regulation from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) that requires marine archaeological reports to be conducted as part of any oil and gas exploration or development plan in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). These reports not only help protect historic properties like shipwrecks; they help developers avoid dangerous unexploded munitions – including ones that contain mustard gas- that were dumped into the Gulf of Mexico after World War II. These reports also create hundreds of jobs, not just for CRM firms but for hundreds of small businesses that support these efforts.
We need you to educate your House representatives on why archaeological studies help ensure oil and gas projects move forward in a safe and timely manner and help avoid delays down the road. Click here to find your member of Congress, and then simply use the sample text below to send your message using the form provided on their website.
Thank you for advocating for smart cultural resource management!
Sample Message:
I write to urge you to oppose S.J. 11 when the House votes on it. This resolution would overturn a Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) rule that requires marine archaeological surveys to be conducted as part of any oil and gas exploration or development plan in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).
Although the stated intent of S.J. 11 is to speed up energy projects, it will likely have the opposite effect, while threatening the safety of oil and gas workers and hurting hundreds of small businesses.
The waters of the OCS contain a significant amount of unexploded ordinance that the military dumped after World War II. That ordinance included depth charges, torpedoes, munitions, mustard gas, and other chemical weapons. Although the military tried to contain the ordinance to delineated plotting efforts, marine archaeologists have found possible unexploded ordinance well outside the boundaries of plotted dumping areas. These waters also contain scores of shipwrecks, many of which are the final resting places of hundreds of victims.
Before the BOEM rule, archaeological studies needed to be conducted only when BOEM believed there may be archaeological resources present. But the predictive models that BOEM used were out of date and often unreliable. BOEM’s rule provides regulatory certainty for oil and gas companies and helps ensure they will not disturb dangerous unexploded chemical weapons. Moreover, these surveys rarely if ever delay projects, as they are often conducted concurrently with other preparatory work.
S.J. 11 would remove that regulatory certainty and increase the risk that energy projects will damage archaeological treasures or come into contact with dangerous ordinance. In addition, S.J. 11 would harm small businesses and job creation in the Gulf Coast and beyond for the surveying companies, boat operators, equipment vendors, commercial divers, specialized software developers, and others who make these surveys possible.
Archaeological surveys provide safety and certainty so that offshore energy development moves forward in a timely manner. I urge you to oppose S.J. 11.