WASHINGTON - Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Director Brian Salerno welcomed U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Thomas and other Coast Guard senior officers to BSEE's headquarters in Washington, D.C. for the first quarterly meeting between the two agencies Jan. 29, 2016.
Director Salerno and Rear Admiral Thomas began the meeting by signing a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for regulating floating Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) facilities. Currently BSEE and the Coast Guard share jurisdiction over the regulation of floating OCS facilities. This MOA ensures a coordinated approach in the regulation of these facilities by clearly outlining the responsibilities of each agency for inspection and oversight of systems and sub-systems.
They also updated The meeting also included operations updates from both BSEE and Coast Guard leaders and presentations involving headquarters staffs in Washington, D.C. The two agencies discussed oil spill preparedness and exercise planning, as well as joint training opportunities for BSEE and Coast Guard personnel. In addition, BSEE and Coast Guard leaders expressed their continued commitment to sharing and applying risk data to promote safety and environmental protection offshore.
Senior leaders of the Department of the Interior and the Coast Guard have been conducting routine meetings in Washington, D.C. since the late 1990’s. Since Oct. 1, 2011, however, the meetings have taken on greater significance and have occurred on more frequent basis, as a sign of commitment to interagency coordination. In early 2014, BSEE and the Coast Guard formally established a new quarterly meeting schedule that has improved the exchange of information on offshore activities. The agencies have also established separate quarterly meetings of a Response Workgroup and a Prevention Workgroup, in addition to a meeting between senior leaders from BSEE's Gulf of Mexico Region office and the Coast Guard's District Eight in New Orleans.
A list of BSEE's interagency agreements can be viewed here.
