Federal Register, Volume 77 Issue 177 (Wednesday, September 12, 2012)

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 177 (Wednesday, September 12, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56189-56190]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-22364]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Elwha River Dam 
Removal and Floodplain Restoration Ecosystem Service Valuation Pilot 
Project

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on 
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before November 13, 
2012.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616,

[[Page 56190]]

14th and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the 
Internet at [email protected]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should 
be directed to Dr. Anthony Dvarskas (732) 872-3090 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    This request is for a new information collection.
    National Ocean Services' Office of Response and Restoration, 
Assessment and Restoration Division and the National Marine Fisheries 
Services' Office of Habitat Conservation are requesting approval for a 
new information collection to conduct a pilot study to test the Elwha 
River Dam Removal and Floodplain Restoration Ecosystem Service 
Valuation Survey it has developed.
    The removal of two hydroelectric dams on the Elwha River is one of 
the largest dam-removal projects in U.S. history. This project, along 
with restoration actions planned for the floodplain and drained 
reservoir basins, will have numerous impacts to people of the 
surrounding region. Impacted groups include recreators who engage in 
river activities such as fishing and rafting, reservoir users, and 
members of Native American tribes for whom the river has cultural, 
environmental, and economic significance. The dam removal and 
restoration actions could also have value to people throughout the 
Pacific Northwest, regardless of whether they visit the Elwha River or 
Olympic Peninsula. Such nonuse value may be significant because the dam 
removal and habitat restoration will restore the river to more natural 
conditions and will restore populations of salmon and other fish 
species as well as forests and wildlife. This project will also address 
an important gap in research on indirect and nonuse values provided by 
habitat restoration.
    A study of the value of ecological restoration is of particular 
interest in this location because significant baseline ecological data 
are available to allow a comparison of ecological values with some of 
the more obvious use losses associated with the reservoir. The ability 
to link results of the study to precise measures of ecosystem changes 
will be useful in applying the study to future restoration sites, 
enabling NOAA to evaluate a broader range of ecosystem services 
provided by future restoration actions.
    NOAA has developed a nonmarket valuation survey to administer to 
people living in Washington and Oregon. This survey has been tested 
with small focus groups and one-on-one interviews to ensure the survey 
questions and choice scenarios presented are accurate, easily 
understood, and the least burdensome. The next step in the survey 
development process is to administer a pilot study of the draft survey 
instrument to test several, complex methodological approaches for 
presenting information to respondents. In particular, NOAA plans to 
test several variations of the choice table.

II. Method of Collection

    The proposed pilot survey would be administered in two waves. In 
the first wave, Knowledge Networks (KN) would administer the survey 
online, to its existing KnowledgePanel^TM in Washington and 
Oregon, with a goal of achieving 1,050 completed surveys. Using the 
KnowledgePanel^TM will allow NOAA to test different ways of 
presenting information to respondents. Because NOAA ultimately plans to 
administer the final survey instrument using a mail mode, the second 
wave would be administered by mail with a goal of achieving 250 
completed surveys. The information gained from the testing in 
KnowledgePanel^TM will be used to select and administer one 
of the approaches for presenting the information in a mail mode.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: None.
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Regular submission (request for a new information 
collection).
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,300.
    Estimated Time per Response: 30 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 650.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0 in recordkeeping/
reporting costs.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

    Dated: September 6, 2012.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2012-22364 Filed 9-11-12; 8:45 am]
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