U.S. Department of the Interior Minerals Management Service Gulf of Mexico OCS Region

MMS Study Finds that Oil and Gas Industry Development
Along the Gulf Coast Is Only Part of the Picture

The Minerals Management Service (MMS), Gulf of Mexico Region, has released the results of a study that shows that the socioeconomic impacts of the oil and gas industry along the Gulf Coast vary greatly from place to place.  The study, "Assessment of Historical, Social, and Economic Impacts of OCS Development on Gulf Coast Communities," was done for MMS under contract by TechLaw, Inc.  The two-volume study report, which has the same title, shows that other factors not related to oil and gas development along the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), such as the GI Bill, school desegregation, and construction of the Interstate Highway system have driven much of the change.

Lafourche and Terrebonne Parishes in south Louisiana; San Patricio County in the Coastal Bend area of Texas; and Baldwin and Mobile Counties in Alabama were carefully studied for impacts from offshore oil and gas development since 1930.  Social scientists looked at the historical, social, and economic changes in the economic and social structures of these parishes and counties in the last 70 years.  Changes in community landscapes, work, and education were examined at the community level using rapid ethnographic techniques.

The scientists’ analysis showed that, while there are similarities along the Gulf Coast, nevertheless the impacts of oil and gas development on the OCS vary widely.  Impacts were greatest in south Lafourche Parish, which is traditionally tied to fish and offshore oil.  Direct impacts in San Patricio County were less extensive, and in the Mobile Bay area of Alabama they were even less evident.  The decline of oil and gas prices in the mid-1980’s had serious impacts on south Louisiana and to a lesser extent in San Patricio County.  Non-OCS factors were responsible for significant changes in these areas.

The study report is available from the Minerals Management Service, Gulf of Mexico Region, at 1201 Elmwood Park Blvd., New Orleans, Louisiana  70123; telephone orders can be placed at 1-800-200-GULF.

MMS is the Federal Agency in the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages the Nation's oil, natural gas and other mineral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf in Federal offshore waters.  The Agency also collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral revenues from Federal and Indian leases.  These collections totaled nearly $8 billion last year and more than $110 billion since the Agency was created in 1982.  Annually, nearly $1 billion from those revenues go into the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the acquisition and development of state and Federal park and recreation lands.

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MMS's Website Address: http://www.mms.gov