USGS Energy Resources Program

Abstract

The Energy Resources Program of the USGS is responsible for assessing the energy resource potential of the Nation and the world (exclusive of Federal offshore waters) and the environmental and health impacts of energy production and use. In order to accomplish this mission, the Energy Resources Program has four main objectives: (1) to assess national and global resources (oil, gas, coal, coalbed methane, and methane hydrates); (2) to understand the geologic framework and processes of energy resources; (3) to evalute the environmental and economic impact of developing and using those resources, and (4) to deliver energy resource information to land and resource managers, energy policy makers, other scientists, academia, private industry, environmental groups, and other non-governmental organizations. The USGS Energy Resources Program is unique in comparison to other energy-related federal agencies. The Department of Agriculture Forest Service is responsible for land management; the Department of Energy is responsible for technology development as well as nuclear and renewable energy; the Energy Information Administration delivers energy reserve statistics. Within the Department of Interior, the Bureau of Land Management is responsible for leasing federal solid and liquid minerals and for land management activities; the Minerals Management Service is responsible for royalty management of federal resources and for federal offshore leasing; and the USGS Energy Resources Program assesses the remaining undiscovered energy resources, conducts research on the framework and occurrence of energy resources, and studies the effects of development and use of energy resources.