On November 15th 2011, the volunary offshore oil and gas industry guideline called the Safety and Environmental Management Systems (SEMS) became mandatory. An update (SEMS II) to this regulation bacame effective June 4, 2013 with compliance required by June 4, 2014.
This regulation is aimed at promoting safety and environmental protection. The intent is to provide measures to identify and manage the impact of EH&S issues through out the lifecycle of oil and gas facilities in the Outer Continental Shelf including Department of Interior (DOI) regulated pipelines. There is additional focus on training and assuring that all personnel will have the appropriate skills and knowledge to perform thei assigned duties.
SEMS includes the following programe elements:
- General Management Responsibilities
- Safety and Environmental Information
- Hazards Analysis
- Management of Change
- Operating Procedures
- Safe Work Practices and Contractor Selection
- Training
- Mechanical Integrity
- Pre-startup Review
- Emergency Response and Control
- Investigation of Incidents
- SEMS Program of Audits
- Recordkeeping and Documentation
- Stop Work Authority (SWA)
- Ultimate Work Authority (UWA)
- Employee Participation Plan (EPP)
- Reporting Unsafe Working Condition
The NTL and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) SEMS presentation are available for more information. Also found in this section are FM O&G documents related to SEMS.