Oil and Gas Leasing: Past Work Identifies Numerous Challenges with Interior’s Oversight

Government Accountability Office http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-487T?source=ra For onshore leases, Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has oversight responsibilities. For offshore leases, the newly created Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE), has oversight responsibilities. Prior to BOEMRE, the Minerals Management Service’s (MMS) Offshore Energy and Minerals Management Office oversaw offshore oil and gas activities, while … Continue reading »

Climate Change Issues: Options for Addressing Challenges to Carbon Offset Quality

Government Accountability Office http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-345?source=ra Carbon offsets are reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in one place to compensate for emissions elsewhere…A number of voluntary offset programs also exist…Prior GAO work found that it can be difficult to ensure offset quality–that offsets achieve intended reductions. One quality criterion is that reductions must be “additional” to what would … Continue reading »

Measuring Disaster Preparedness: FEMA Has Made Limited Progress in Assessing National Capabilities

US Government Accountability Office http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-260T?source=ra This testimony discusses the efforts of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)–a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)–to measure and assess national capabilities to respond to a major disaster…Congress enacted the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (Post-Katrina Act) to address shortcomings in the preparation for and … Continue reading »