Two giant sea stars
from the Pacific
Northwest benthic
habitat and geology
characterization study.
Photo: Oregon State
University
The Environmental Studies Program (ESP) announces the availability of six recently completed study reports that were posted online via the Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS) from January - March 2015. The new postings relay findings from regional studies for Alaska, the Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific and Marine Minerals program activities in the Atlantic and Gulf. The reports and associated technical summaries can be accessed through ESPIS.
Topics covered in the latest postings include:
Alaska: An analysis of benthic communities on weathervane scallop beds in the Shelikof Strait, located south of the entrance to the Cook Inlet;
Gulf of Mexico: A report recommending the use of several oil spill risk analysis models to improve the forecasting of risks to environmental resources, and accompanying data sets; a report assessing the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on tourism in the Gulf of Mexico; and a report measuring county-level tourism and recreation in the Gulf of Mexico region.
Pacific: A two-volume report characterizing both Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) geology and benthic habitat offshore near potential renewable energy sites in the Pacific Northwest.
Marine Minerals Program: A literature synthesis and workshop report to promote understanding of the habitat value and function of shoal/ridge/trough complexes to fish and fisheries on the Atlantic and Gulf OCS.
BOEM’s Environmental Studies Program (ESP) develops, funds, and manages rigorous scientific research to inform policy decisions regarding the development of energy and mineral resources on the OCS.
The Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS) makes all completed ESP reports available on-line as full electronic pdf documents, including images and graphics. Technical summaries of more than 1,200 BOEM-sponsored environmental research projects, as well as full pdf documents of over 3,400 research reports, are available for online full text search.
For additional information on BOEM’s Environmental Studies Program, including how to find out about research opportunities, click here. You can also follow our work on Facebook, Twitter and Flicker.