WATCHING WASHINGTON CHANGES AT MMS

With Patrick Crow It comes as no surprise that the oil industry may not like the Clinton administration's approach to offshore leasing. Tom Fry, the new Minerals Management Service director, hinted to a National Ocean Industries Association meeting in New Orleans that the administration may yield to the states on Outer Continental Shelf issues and may tilt leasing toward gas production.

Aug. 2, 1993

3 min read

It comes as no surprise that the oil industry may not like the Clinton administration's approach to offshore leasing.

Tom Fry, the new Minerals Management Service director, hinted to a National Ocean Industries Association meeting in New Orleans that the administration may yield to the states on Outer Continental Shelf issues and may tilt leasing toward gas production.

Fry, formerly with a Dallas gas production company, worked in the Clinton campaign last year. He admitted he sought the MMS job "because that's the part of the business I like and understand and enjoy participating in."

NO. 1 GOAL

Fry said, "If we have one very specific goal at this time it is undoubtedly to establish public confidence in the OCS program and confidence will be well founded on good science and good judgment.

"Public confidence in the OCS program has been lacking, largely because the public doesn't understand the offshore program--in terms of safety, economics, and energy--and they have been biased by unfortunate incidents that have not even been related to the offshore industry.

"And while that doesn't mean we're going to see less moratoriums, more exploration, or more drilling, it does mean that we have to look at new ways of doing things because the approach we embark upon now must ultimately gain public confidence.

"So I think the approach you can expect to see is that we will be working to forge consensus. Never, ever, getting ahead of the public in our decisions."

Fry said MMS will focus on activities in the Gulf of Mexico, southern California, and Alaska to ensure they are conducted with the utmost protection of the environment.

"I see no real change in activity in the gulf, but in areas such as Alaska, I can't imagine our doing anything without a consensus.

"In fact, 2 weeks ago Asst. Interior Sec. Bob Armstrong met with Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles and reassured him that the department will carefully consider the state's objections before making plans for development of oil and gas in federal waters off the state's shores."

Fry noted the Clinton administration wants to expand the use of natural gas. "I think we can try to gear our policy to leasing (in areas) where expectations are much higher for natural gas than for oil."

He said, "As more independents enter the offshore, we will be looking to the more experienced operators who have been active offshore for years to lend their expertise to newcomers, because we all realize that a serious environmental incident could cast a shadow over all players."

PRODUCTION QUESTION

Perhaps most disturbing was this statement by Fry:

"I think as a society, we have to be more open to conservation as a way of life. The secretary (Interior Sec. Bruce Babbitt) has asked quite frankly if we really need to produce all the oil and gas now. I don't know that we've answered that question, but I do think it should be part of the debate and part of the mix and how we deal in the future with oil and gas issues. We need to be aware of it, we cannot ignore it, and we need to be a part of it if we are to establish public confidence as individuals and as managers of the offshore program."