[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 117 (Friday, June 17, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39624-39626]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-14316]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Information Collection; Generic Clearance for Non-Timber Forest
Products
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and
organizations on the new information collection, Non-timber Forest
Products.
DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before August 16,
2016 to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date
will be considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Comments concerning this notice should be addressed to Lynne
Westphal, USDA, Forest Service, Northern Research Station, 1033
University Place, Suite 360, Evanston, IL 60201.
Comments also may be submitted via facsimile to 847-866-9506 or by
email to: [email protected]. Please clearly state that your comments
are in reference to the proposed Generic Clearance for Non-timber
Forest Products. Comments submitted in response to this notice may be
made available to the public through relevant Web sites and upon
request. For this reason, please do not include in your comments
information of a confidential nature, such as sensitive personal
information or proprietary information. If you send an email comment,
your email address will be automatically captured and included as part
of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available
on the Internet. Please note that responses to this public comment
request containing any routine notice about the confidentiality of the
communication will be treated as public comments that may be made
available to the public notwithstanding the inclusion of the routine
notice.
The public may inspect the draft supporting statement and/or
comments received at USDA, Forest Service, Northern Research Station,
1033 University Place, Suite 360, Evanston, IL 60201 during normal
business hours. Visitors are encouraged to call ahead to 847-866-9311
to facilitate entry to the
[[Page 39625]]
building. The public may request an electronic copy of the draft
supporting statement and/or any comments received be sent via return
email. Requests should be emailed to [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynne Westphal, USDA, Forest Service,
Northern Research Station, 847-866-9311 x11. Individuals who use
telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 twenty-four hours a
day, every day of the year, including holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Non-Timber Forest Products.
OMB Number: 0596--NEW.
Type of Request: New.
Abstract: Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are plants, mushrooms,
and plant- or tree-derived goods like nuts, boughs, sap, and leaves
that are harvested for use as food, medicine, and other purposes.
Previous research suggests that approximately 20% of the U.S.
population collects non-timber forest products for social, cultural,
and/or economic reasons. Some non-timber forest product gathering is
formal (planned, systematic) while much of it is informal (unplanned,
opportunistic, and/or incidental to other outdoor recreation
activities). For some people, harvested wild plants and mushrooms make
up a substantial or nutritionally important part of their diet. In
other cases, non-timber forest products are locally or regionally
important products for businesses.
Many opportunities exist to design and manage forests and other
natural areas to enhance the supply of non-timber forest products and
increase the benefits they provide to society, and to maintain
populations of, or adapt to loss of, important non-timber forest
products in the face of changes like invasive species and climate
impacts. Potential benefits include improved public health outcomes
from outdoor activity including decreased obesity, diabetes, stress,
and depression. Harvesting and consuming non-timber forest products
also may help reduce the risk of malnutrition for individuals living in
areas with limited access to fresh, affordable food. Designing and
managing for non-timber forest products may have particular value in
achieving environmental justice, as harvesting wild plants and
mushrooms appears to be especially important for recent immigrants,
American Indians, and Alaska Natives. However, managing forests and
other natural areas to provide non-timber forest products in a
sustainable way requires detailed, scientifically-based information
that is not currently available. For example, it is important to avoid
overharvesting any species and to minimize people's exposure to soil-
and plant-based contaminants.
Many laws and policies specifically direct the USDA Forest Service
(Forest Service) to consider and manage for non-timber forest products
for the benefit of the American public. The Multiple-Use Sustained-
Yield Act of 1960 requires the Forest Service to manage National
Forests ``under principles of multiple use and to produce a sustained
yield of products and services.'' The Forest and Rangeland Renewable
Resources Planning Act (RPA) of 1974 requires the Secretary of
Agriculture to ``maintain a comprehensive inventory of renewable
resources and evaluate opportunities to improve their yield of goods
and services.'' The 2012 Planning Rule specifically requires
``consideration of habitat conditions for wildlife, fish, and plants
commonly enjoyed and used by the public for hunting, fishing, trapping,
gathering, observing, and subsistence'' on national forests [italics
added]. The Forest Service's 2010 National Report on Sustainable
Forests affirms the agency's ``all-lands'' approach to managing the
nation's natural resources, including forests that are not part of the
National Forest system by providing useful information and management
guidelines for potential adoption by nonfederal forest owners;
gathering of non-timber forest products is addressed many times in this
report. The United States is a signatory to the Montreal Process and is
required to report every 5 years on a range of criteria and indicators
for sustainable use of temperate and boreal forests. Several of the
indicators address non-timber forest products, including one on
subsistence uses of U.S. forests, but the only systematic data
currently available on subsistence practices in the United States are
for Alaska.
The Forest Service must also meet trust responsibilities to
American Indians and Alaskan Natives on federal and tribal lands. This
includes upholding treaties with American Indian tribes, the Federal
Trust responsibility to tribes, and the Native American Religious
Freedom Act. Non-timber forest products make up a significant amount of
the natural resources that tribes depend on for traditional cultural
uses related to health, economic and food security, and native customs
and practices. Much of the historical and ethnographic information
about the uses of non-timber forest products by American Indians and
Alaskan Natives may not reflect contemporary uses and issues. Gaining
new information can help us understand how uses of non-timber forest
products have changed over time in response to management, socio-
cultural circumstances, the economic conditions of tribes, and
environmental forces of change.
Taking all of this into account, it is clear that Forest Service
and other public and private land managers need general and place-
specific information about non-timber forest products and non-timber
forest product harvesting practices--and this information is not
currently available. Therefore, to ensure that the Forest Service can
meet its statutory and regulatory responsibilities and is able to
inform management of forests and other natural areas to provide non-
timber forest products in a sustainable way, the Forest Service seeks
to obtain OMB approval to collect information from people who harvest
non-timber forest products and from people who manage, make policies
for or otherwise have a stake in the management of lands where non-
timber forest products are harvested or may be harvested.
Affected Public: Individuals and Households, Businesses and Non-
Profit Organizations, and/or State, Local or Tribal Government.
Estimate of Burden per Response: 30-90 minutes.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 2,000.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 1,000-3,000 hours.
Comment is invited: Comment is invited on: (1) Whether this
collection of information is necessary for the stated purposes and the
proper performance of the functions of the Forest Service, including
whether the information will have practical or scientific utility; (2)
the accuracy of the Forest Service's estimate of the burden of the
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology
and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize
the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including
the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
All comments received in response to this notice, including names
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record.
Comments will be summarized and included in the
[[Page 39626]]
submission request toward Office of Management and Budget approval.
Dated: June 9, 2016.
Carlos Rodriguez-Franco,
Acting Deputy Chief for Research and Development.
[FR Doc. 2016-14316 Filed 6-16-16; 8:45 am]
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