Office of Coastal Management

CHANCE DOES PIPELINE RESEARCH

John E. Chance & Associates, Inc. has begun research work for the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources' (DNR) Coastal Management Division.

Chance will compile pipeline information that is available from the coastal division, the State Land Office, and DNR's Office of Conservation. The work involves conducting a comparison of the data from the three offices for accuracy and entering the results into a digital data base.

The area to be researched includes the shoreline of the Louisiana coast to the three-mile line in the Gulf of Mexico which is the boundary between state waters and federal waters for mineral rights.

Once Chance completes the research, a comprehensive GIS data base of pipelines will be developed. This documentation will pinpoint the location of existing pipelines which can be used to avoid hazards of pipelines during oil and gas industry operations.

"The GIS data base of the state's pipelines will be a valuable tool for DNR personnel in the coastal, conservation, energy, and mineral resources offices," commented DNR Secretary Jack Caldwell.

Chance has recently updated its own in-house Gulf of Mexico data base, which tracks the location of structures and potential hazards. This exclusive software is useful to Chance personnel to work with clients in planning projects and assuring a safer offshore operation. Chance has incorporated over 40 years of survey service to the Gulf of Mexico into its data base, along with Continental Shelf lease information, shipwrecks, block boundary polygons, pipelines, and shipping fairways. Data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Minerals Management Service will also be incorporated.

Chance surveyors are currently using the data base to assist clients in planning pipeline routes and in moving and anchoring rigs and barges.

For more information:
Dixie Poche', Mgr., Marketing Services
JOHN E. CHANCE & ASSOCIATES
TEL: (337) 268-3286
dpoche@jchance.com

Karl Morgan
DNR Coastal Management Division
TEL: (225) 342-6470