Title: Atlantic Seismic Airgun Protection Act
Policy area: Energy

Summary:
Atlantic Seismic Airgun Protection Act
This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit conducting geological or geophysical activities in support of oil, gas, or methane hydrate exploration and development on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf.
The geological and geophysical activities are described in a final programmatic environmental impact statement by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management entitled "Atlantic OCS Proposed Geological and Geophysical Activities, Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Planning Areas."

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1263 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1263

To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit oil-, gas-, 
 and methane hydrate-related seismic activities in the North Atlantic, 
Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Straits of Florida planning areas of 
          the outer Continental Shelf, and for other purposes.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2017

 Mr. Booker (for himself, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Nelson, Mr. Blumenthal, 
  Mr. Menendez, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Markey, Ms. Hassan, Ms. Warren, Mrs. 
Shaheen, and Mr. Sanders) introduced the following bill; which was read 
  twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit oil-, gas-, 
 and methane hydrate-related seismic activities in the North Atlantic, 
Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Straits of Florida planning areas of 
          the outer Continental Shelf, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Atlantic Seismic Airgun Protection 
Act''.

SEC. 2. MORATORIUM ON OIL-, GAS-, AND METHANE HYDRATE-RELATED SEISMIC 
              ACTIVITIES IN NORTH ATLANTIC, MID-ATLANTIC, SOUTH 
              ATLANTIC, AND STRAITS OF FLORIDA PLANNING AREAS OF OUTER 
              CONTINENTAL SHELF.

    Section 11 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 
1340) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Moratorium on Oil-, Gas-, and Methane Hydrate-Related Seismic 
Activities in North Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Straits 
of Florida Planning Areas.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
no person or agency of the United States may conduct geological or 
geophysical activities (as those terms are described in the final 
programmatic environmental impact statement of the Bureau of Ocean 
Energy Management entitled `Atlantic OCS Proposed Geological and 
Geophysical Activities, Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Planning Areas' 
and completed February 2014) in support of oil, gas, or methane hydrate 
exploration and development in any area located in the North Atlantic, 
Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, or Straits of Florida planning areas of 
the outer Continental Shelf.''.
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