7390 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2013 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Farm Service Agency 

Commodity Credit Corporation 

Information Collection Request; 

Economic Assessment of 

Conservation Reserve Program Lands 

for Hunting 

AGENCY: Farm Service Agency and 

Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 

Farm Service Agency (FSA), on behalf 

of the Commodity Credit Corporation 

(CCC), is requesting comments from all 

interested individuals and organizations 

on a new information collection request 

associated with the ‘‘Economic 

Assessment of Conservation Reserve 

Program (CRP) Lands for Hunting.’’ 

DATES: We will consider comments that 

we receive by April 2, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit 

comments on this notice. In your 

comments, include date, OMB control 

number, volume, and page number of 

this issue of the Federal Register. You 

may submit comments by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: Skip Hyberg, Agricultural 

Economist, Economic and Policy 

Analysis Staff, Farm Service Agency, 

1400 Independence Ave. SW., Room 

3730, Mail Stop 0519, Washington, DC 

20250. 

Comments also should be sent to the 

Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget, 

Washington, DC 20503. Copies of the 

information collection may be obtained 

from Dr. Skip Hyberg at the above 

address. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Skip Hyberg, (202) 720–9222. Persons 

with disabilities who require alternative 

means for communication (Braille, large 

print, audio tape, etc.) should contact 

the USDA Target Center at (202) 720– 

2600 (voice and TDD). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Economic Assessment of 

Conservation Reserve Program Lands for 

Hunting. 

OMB Control Number: 0560–NEW. 

Type of Request: New. 

Abstract: In accordance with the Food 

Security Act of 1985 (Pub. L. 99–198), 

as amended, FSA, on behalf of CCC, 

administers the CRP to conserve and 

improve soil, water, and wildlife 

resources. Federal investments in the 

CRP on private cropland enhance 

essential ecosystem resources, including 

wildlife, which has been documented to 

provide improved hunting opportunities 

in rural areas. As such, hunters from 

within the state and non-residents 

outside the state are drawn to CRP lands 

or other private lands surrounding CRP 

lands for hunting. 

FSA considers benefits from the 

enhancement of wildlife habitat when 

selecting CRP offers. As hunting 

opportunities increase, so too does 

hunter spending, generating economic 

activity and employment within the 

outdoor recreational sector, which is of 

particular importance to rural 

communities in the region. FSA is 

responsible for identifying and 

quantifying the relationship between job 

creation and investments in CRP lands, 

as increased outdoor recreation is 

among the benefits FSA provides in 

administering the CRP. 

Without data on hunter use and 

expenditures, the economic 

contribution generated by federal 

investments in the CRP cannot be 

reliably estimated. With this in mind, 

FSA plans to work with Colorado State 

University to conduct statewide mail 

surveys with deer, upland bird, and 

waterfowl hunters in North Dakota (ND) 

and South Dakota (SD). There have thus 

far been no statewide assessments of the 

CRP program on hunting use, 

expenditures, and jobs in ND or SD; the 

only prior studies focused on six small 

areas in ND and are now more than 10 

years old. There have also been 

significant changes to the CRP since that 

time. In addition, there is limited 

generalizability of the six ND areas to 

the rest of ND and to SD. Therefore, FSA 

believes that these new statewide 

surveys will assist it in successfully 

furthering the goals of the CRP. Each of 

the six surveys will elicit information 

on hunters’: 

(a) Hunting activity in 2013; 

(b) Use of CRP lands in terms of days 

spent hunting there; 

(c) Expenditure pattern information; 

and 

(d) Demographic information. 

The primary objective of the surveys 

is to enable FSA to estimate the 

economic job and income contribution 

of current CRP lands on the rural areas 

within the respective states, and 

possible changes to jobs and income 

from potential changes to CRP lands 

emanating from either changes in the 

CRP program or farmers’ response to 

non program conditions. 

The research proposal has been 

discussed with the respective State Fish 

and Game agencies, and it was decided 

that mail surveys are the best tool to 

obtain the data needed to estimate CRP’s 

contribution to rural economies. Mail 

surveys appear to be the best approach 

for an unbiased survey because the State 

Fish and Game agencies do not have 

email addresses for all hunters, and 

hunters in many rural locations of ND 

and SD do not have email access at 

home. 

Collection of the data is necessary to 

evaluate and improve CRP selection 

criteria and program implementation, as 

described above. Having information on 

recreation-related jobs will help FSA to 

conduct a comparison of county level 

impacts of land temporarily going out of 

crop production via CRP. The data will 

be analyzed by Dr. John Loomis of 

Colorado State University’s Department 

of Agricultural and Resource 

Economics. 

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting 

burden for this information collection is 

estimated to average 15 minutes per 

response. 

Frequency of Collection: One time 

only. 

Respondents: Hunters with ND and 

SD hunting licenses. 

Estimated Number of Annual 

Respondents: 6,000. 

Estimated Number of Responses per 

Respondent: 1. 

Estimated Total Annual Responses: 

6,000. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden on 

Respondents: 1,500 hours. 

We are requesting comments on all 

aspects of this information collection to 

help us to: 

(1) Evaluate whether the collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of FSA, 

including whether the information will 

have practical utility; 

(2) Evaluate the accuracy of FSA’s 

estimate of burden including the 

validity of the methodology and 

assumptions used; 

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and 

(4) Minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on those who 

are to respond, including through the 

use of appropriate automated, 

electronic, mechanical, or other 

technological collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

All responses to this notice, including 

name and addresses when provided, 

will be summarized and included in the 

request for OMB approval. All 

comments will also become a matter of 

public record. 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2013 / Notices 7391 

Signed on January 23, 2013. 

Juan M. Garica, 

Administrator, Farm Service Agency, and 

Executive Vice President, Commodity Credit 

Corporation. 

[FR Doc. 2013–02358 Filed 1–31–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Motorized Travel Management Plan, 

Tonto National Forest; Gila, Maricopa, 

Pinal, and Counties, AZ 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The Tonto National Forest 

will prepare an environmental impact 

statement (EIS) to disclose the effects of 

designating a system of roads, trails, and 

areas for motorized vehicle use, thereby 

developing a motorized travel 

management plan. Such a plan is 

needed to meet National travel 

management regulations and to improve 

the management and enforcement of 

motor vehicle use on National Forest 

Service lands. This notice describes the 

components to be included in the 

motorized travel plan, proposed forest 

plan amendment, decisions to be made, 

estimated dates pertaining to the 

project, information concerning public 

participation, and the responsible 

agency official. The project area is 

defined by the boundaries of the Tonto 

National Forest, and includes the Cave 

Creek, Globe, Mesa, Payson, Pleasant 

Valley, and Tonto Basin ranger districts. 

DATES: Written comments to be 

considered in the preparation of the 

draft environmental impact statement 

(DEIS) should be submitted on or before 

March 4, 2013. The DEIS is expected to 

be published in June 2013. The final 

environmental impact statement (FEIS) 

and record of decision (ROD) is 

expected to be available by November 

2013. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Neil Bosworth, Forest Supervisor, 

ATTN: Travel Management, 2324 E. 

McDowell Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85006. 

Comments may also be sent via email to 

comments-southwesternTMRTonto@fs.fed.us, or via facsimile 

(602) 225–5295. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Anne Thomas, Tonto National Forest 

NEPA Coordinator, 2324 E. McDowell 

Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85006, (602) 225– 

5213. 

Individuals who use 

telecommunication devices for the deaf 

(TDD) may call the Federal Information 

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339 

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern 

Time, Monday through Friday. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 9, 2005, the Forest Service 

published final travel management 

regulations governing off-highway 

vehicles (OHV) and other motor 

vehicles on national forests and 

grasslands. The regulations amended 

part 212, subpart B of part 251, subpart 

A of part 261, and removed part 295 of 

title 36 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR). These three 

regulations are referred to together as 

the Travel Management Rule. This rule 

was developed in response to the 

substantial increase in use of OHVs on 

National Forest System lands and 

related damage to forest resources 

caused by unmanaged OHV use over the 

past 30 years. The regulations 

implement Executive Orders (EO) 11644 

and EO 11989 regarding off-road use of 

motor vehicles on Federal lands. 

The regulations provide ‘‘for a system 

of National Forest System (NFS) roads, 

NFS trails, and areas of NFS lands that 

are designated for motor vehicle use. 

Motor vehicle use off designated roads 

and trails and outside of designated 

areas is prohibited’’ (36 CFR 212.50). 

Designated routes and areas shall be 

identified on a motor vehicle use map 

(MVUM) and made available to the 

public. Currently, motor vehicles may 

drive on any open road on the Tonto 

National Forest. The Tonto National 

Forest does not currently manage trails 

for motorized use. In the 1985 Tonto 

National Forest Plan, approximately 

700,004 acres were identified as open to 

cross-country travel in the Payson and 

Pleasant Valley ranger districts. In 

addition, the 1985 Tonto National 

Forest Plan identified over 2,170,000 

acres closed to cross-country OHV travel 

in the Cave Creek, Mesa, Globe, and 

Tonto Basin ranger districts. 

In order to comply with the travel 

management regulations, the Tonto 

National Forest participated in a 

forestwide travel analysis process 

beginning in 2007 that was facilitated by 

a contractor. The intent of this process 

was to help the forest determine the 

minimum transportation system 

necessary to provide safe and efficient 

travel and for administration, 

utilization, and protection of NFS lands 

(36 CFR 212.5(b)). Based on internal 

scoping, the Forest Supervisor 

determined that the Tonto National 

Forest would prepare an Environmental 

Assessment (EA) to complete the 

analysis required to comply with the 

Travel Management Rule. In October 

2009, the forest released a proposed 

action. Seven public meetings were held 

throughout the communities within and 

proximate in November and December 

2009 to gather public comments about 

the proposed action, including roads 

and trails proposed for motorized use. 

Comments to the proposed action were 

accepted through December 4, 2009. A 

draft version of the EA was released for 

public comment on January 6, 2012, for 

a 30-day comment period. Due to the 

length and complexity of the 

Environmental Assessment and requests 

from the public, an additional 30-day 

comment period began on February 5, 

2012. Approximately 300 letters were 

received during these two comment 

periods. 

After initiating compliance with the 

Travel Management Rule under an EA, 

the Tonto National Forest determined 

that the level of significance reached a 

point that environmental analysis for 

travel management under an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

would be more appropriate. All 

comments provided throughout the 

process thus far, including those to the 

2009 proposed action, the 2012 

Environmental Assessment, and public 

meetings, will continue to be considered 

and may be incorporated into either the 

proposed action for the EIS or 

alternatives to that proposed action. 

Purpose and Need for Action 

The purpose of this project is to 

comply with the Travel Management 

Rule by providing a system of roads, 

trails, and areas designated for motor 

vehicle use by class of vehicle and time 

of year on the Tonto National Forest. 

There is a need to determine which, if 

any, authorized National Forest System 

(NFS) roads currently open should be 

closed to motorized travel. In addition, 

there is a need to determine which, if 

any, authorized roads currently closed 

should be open to motorized travel. 

There is also a need identify any 

restrictions on allowed uses, classes of 

vehicles, and/or seasons of use for 

specific routes. There is also a need to 

determine which, if any, unauthorized 

routes should be added to NFS as trails 

and roads open for motorized access. In 

addition, there is a need to determine if, 

when, where, and how far motor 

vehicles may be driven off designated 

roads for the sole purpose of motorized 

dispersed camping or big game retrieval. 

And finally, there is a need to amend 

1985 Tonto National Forest Plan to 

prohibit motor vehicle use off 

designated NFS roads, trails, and areas 

on two ranger districts (Payson and 

Pleasant Valley) except as shown on the 

Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) and to 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES