Deepwater Horizon: Coast Guard and Interior Could Improve Their Offshore Energy Inspection Programs Page: 2 of 22
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GAO
Accountablllty * Integrity * Reliability
Highlights
Highlights of GAO-12-203T, a testimony
before the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and
Maritime Transportation, Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, House of
Representatives
Why GAO Did This Study
The April 2010 explosion of the
Deepwater Horizon, a mobile offshore
drilling unit (MODU), showed that the
consequences of an incident on an
offshore energy facility can be
significant. A key way to ensure that
offshore energy facilities are meeting
applicable security, safety, and
production standards is through
conducting periodic inspections of the
facilities. The Coast Guard and the
Department of the Interior (Interior)
share oversight responsibility for
offshore energy facilities. The Coast
Guard is to conduct security
inspections of such facilities, whereas
based on an agreement between the
two agencies, Interior is to conduct
safety compliance inspections on some
offshore facilities on behalf of the
Coast Guard as well as its own
inspections to verify production. This
testimony addresses: (1) the extent to
which the Coast Guard has conducted
security inspections of offshore energy
facilities, and what additional actions
are needed; (2) the extent to which
Interior has conducted inspections of
offshore energy facilities, including
those on behalf of the Coast Guard,
and challenges it faces in conducting
such inspections; and (3) the Coast
Guard's oversight authority of MODUs.
This testimony is based on GAO
products issued from September 2008
through October 2011.
What GAO Recommends
GAO has previously recommended
that the Coast Guard develop policies
and procedures to monitor and track
annual security inspections for offshore
energy facilities and that Interior
address its human capital challenges.
The Coast Guard and Interior agreed.
View GAO-12-203T. For more information,
contact Stephen L. Caldwell at (202) 512-9610
or caldwells@gao.gov and Frank Rusco at
(202) 512-3841 or ruscof@gao.gov.DEEPWATER HORIZON
Coast Guard and Interior Could Improve Their
Offshore Energy Inspection ProgramsWhat GAO Found
The Coast Guard conducted about one-third of its required annual security
inspections of offshore energy facilities from 2008 through 2010 and does not
have procedures in place to help ensure that its field units conduct such
inspections in accordance with its guidance. The Coast Guard's guidance does
not describe specific procedures for the way in which Coast Guard staff should
track whether annual inspections have been conducted. For example, Coast
Guard field unit supervisors and marine inspectors GAO interviewed from five of
the six Coast Guard field units that are to conduct annual security inspections
said that they do not maintain any tool to track whether such inspections had
been conducted. GAO recommended in October 2011 that, among other things,
the Coast Guard develop policies and procedures to monitor and track annual
security inspections. The Coast Guard concurred and stated that it is planning to
update its guidance for field units to address these issues.
Interior's inspection program has not consistently met its internal targets for
production inspections, and faces human capital and reorganization challenges,
but has met its limited target for compliance inspections conducted for the Coast
Guard. In March 2010, GAO found that for four district offices it reviewed, Interior
only met its production inspection goals once during fiscal years 2004 through
2008. Further, GAO reported that difficulties in hiring, training, and retaining key
staff had contributed to challenges in meeting its inspections goals. However, in
recent years, Interior reported that it met its 10 percent target to conduct
compliance inspections of staffed, fixed offshore energy facilities on behalf of the
Coast Guard. In fiscal year 2010, Interior reported that it exceeded its target and
conducts such inspections on 169 of the 1,021 staffed, fixed offshore energy
facilities and has met this target for such inspections for the previous 5 years. In
May 2010, Interior reorganized its bureau responsible for overseeing offshore
energy activities. In June 2011, GAO reported that while this reorganization may
eventually lead to more effective operations, GAO is concerned with Interior's
ability to undertake this reorganization while meeting its oversight responsibilities.
Among other things, Interior plans to hire additional staff with expertise in
inspections and engineering. Amidst these changes, Interior reported that it was
difficult to determine how many inspections it would conduct in fiscal year 2012.
The Coast Guard has limited authority regarding the security of MODUs registered
to foreign countries, such as the DeepwaterHorizon. MODUs are subject to Coast
Guard security regulations if (1) they are self-propelled or (2) they meet specific
production or personnel levels. Whereas the Coast Guard may physically inspect a
U.S.-flagged MODU to ensure compliance with applicable security requirements,
the Coast Guard's oversight of foreign-flagged, self-propelled MODUs, such as the
DeepwaterHorizon, is more limited. The Coast Guard is conducting a study
designed to help determine whether additional actions could better ensure the
security of offshore energy facilities, including MODUs. Further, the Coast Guard
has implemented a risk-based oversight policy for all MODUs to address safety
and environmental protection issues. Although this policy does not directly address
security, increased oversight resulting from this policy could help mitigate the risk
of a terrorist attack to a MODU.United States Government Accountability Office
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United States. Government Accountability Office. Deepwater Horizon: Coast Guard and Interior Could Improve Their Offshore Energy Inspection Programs, text, November 2, 2011; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc295439/m1/2/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.