Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services NAICS 541360

Aug 23, 2025 - Reforming the MMPA

• The House Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee held a July hearing to consider a draft bill to reform the Marine Mammal Protection Act – the federal law to prevent marine mammal species and populations from diminishing due to human activities including marine geophysical surveying. Sponsored by Alaska Republican Nick Begich, the draft bill seeks to modernize the 1972 MMPA to better reflect current science, eliminate conflicts and duplication of bureaucratic processes, and provide for more consistent and certain application of the law, in alignment with President Trump’s efforts to unleash US energy potential by streamlining the permitting process. “As the decades have passed, we’ve seen how its implementation, particularly in the use of vague or overly precautionary standards, has led to confusion, delay and unintended harm,” says Begich. The industry group EnerGeo Alliance supports the bill, while critics say it will make marine mammals vulnerable to harm.
• Trump administration cuts to federal spending threaten to slow or stop geological mapping work by the US Geological Survey (USGS) in nearly two dozen states, The New York Times reported in June. Geologists told NYT that no states have received their 2025 mapping money. Moreover, Trump’s proposed budget would cut funding to the USGS by nearly 40%, crippling its ability to produce geological maps for years to come, according to NYT. Mineral-rich states, including Colorado, Idaho, and Montana – where Trump wants to increase mining and oil and gas activity – all face cuts to local survey offices. Critics say the cuts are counterproductive and that geologic mapping is fundamental to US infrastructure and well worth federal investment. A recent report found that about $2 billion in investments in geological mapping from 1994 to 2009 yielded tens of billions of dollars in value to industries that use them.

• The Trump administration has moved to open 23 million acres of Alaskan Wilderness to drilling by repealing protections imposed by the Biden administration, The New York Times reports. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the previous administration exceeded its authority when it banned oil and gas drilling in the area known as the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. The petroleum reserve, established over a century ago as an energy warehouse for the US Navy, is estimated to contain more than 8 billion barrels of recoverable oil. The Bureau of Land Management has released a draft environmental assessment to propose reopening up to 82% of the reserve to oil and gas leasing and exploration and development. The proposal comes partly in response to Trump’s January executive order, “Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential," the Interior statement said. The area is home to ConocoPhillips’ Willow oil field, approved under Biden.
• Employment by building inspection, surveying, and mapping services firms grew 5.7% in June compared to a year ago, while average industry wages rose by 6.7% over the same period to a new high of $35.39 per hour, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Producer prices for engineering services firms, up 2.7% year over year in July and 17.8% over the past five years per the BLS, have helped to offset swelling payrolls. However, a slowdown in US oil production due to tariff-induced economic uncertainty and falling oil prices may slow demand from energy producers for geophysical surveying and mapping services. In July, the price for one barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil averaged $68.39, down from $81.80 in July 2024. When oil prices are low, demand for the industry’s services declines.