Ocean Energy Safety Committee to Hold Public Meeting

Washington — James A. Watson, Director of the  Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), announced that the Ocean Energy Safety Advisory Committee (OESC) will hold its fourth public meeting on Thursday, April 26, 2012.

“The OESC is a valuable body which is able to thoroughly examine a range of issues, from offshore energy work place and drilling safety, to blow-out containment and spill response,” said Watson. “We are looking forward to the insights and recommendations from this collaboration of government, industry, and academia, as we continue our pursuit of improved offshore safety.”

The OESC is a public federal advisory body, including some of the nation’s leading scientific, engineering and technical experts. Chaired by former Sandia National Laboratory Director Dr. Tom Hunter, the group consists of 15 members from federal agencies, the offshore oil and gas industry, academia, and non-governmental organizations.  The Committee provides critical policy advice to the Secretary of the Interior through the BSEE Director on improving all aspects of offshore energy safety.

The agenda for this meeting will address safety management systems, safety culture, and the OESC Subcommittees’ activities to date on the issues of oil spill prevention, spill containment, spill response, and safety management systems.  Interim recommendations will also be presented to the OESC from its four subcommittees for consideration.

The meeting is open to the public and will be held at the Doubletree by Hilton Houston Intercontinental Airport Hotel, located at 15747 JFK Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77032, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 26, 2012. Approximately 100 visitors can be accommodated on a first-come, first-served basis.  Members of the public will have the opportunity to comment on the activities of OESC and related topics on a first-come, first-served basis during the time allotted for public comment and may submit written comments to the OESC during the meeting or by email to the Committee at [email protected].