20276 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 83 / Friday, May 1, 2009 / Notices 

Item FS–2400–42a FS 2400–14 FS–2400– 

14BV 

Estimate of Annual Burden ...................... 3.0 hours .................................................. 14.4 hours ................................................ 34.4 hours. 

Type of Respondents ............................... Individuals, large and small businesses, and corporations bidding on National Forest timber sales 

and Integrated Resource Contracts. 

Estimated Annual Number of Respondents.445 ........................................................... 825 ........................................................... 200. 

Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent.1.8 ............................................................ 3.9 ............................................................ 1.2. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents.2,400 hours .............................................. 46,332 hours ............................................ 8,256 hours. 

Comment Is Invited 

Comment is invited on: (1) Whether 

the proposed collection of information 

is necessary for the stated purposes or 

the proper performance of the functions 

of the agency, including whether the 

information shall have practical or 

scientific utility; (2) the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed 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 name and address 

when provided, will be summarized and 

included in the request for Office of 

Management and Budget approval. All 

comments also will become a matter of 

public record. 

Dated: April 21, 2009. 

Gloria Manning, 

Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest 

System. 

[FR Doc. E9–10010 Filed 4–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Salmon River Ranger District; Idaho; 

Allison-Berg Allotment EIS 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement. 

SUMMARY: The EIS will document 

changed conditions on the Allison-Berg 

allotment relative to effects on bighorn 

sheep and their habitat sufficient to 

support a determination whether 

continued grazing by domestic sheep 

should be allowed or not, and if so, 

under what conditions. 

DATES: Comments concerning the scope 

of the analysis must be received by June 

15, 2009. The draft environmental 

impact statement is expected in 

September 2010, and the final 

environmental impact statement is 

expected by March 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Darcy Pederson, Acting District Ranger, 

Salmon River Ranger District, 304 Slate 

Creek Road, White Bird, Idaho 83554. It 

is important that reviewers provide their 

comments at such times and in such a 

way that they are useful to the Agency’s 

preparation of the EIS. Therefore, 

comments should be provided prior to 

the close of the comment period and 

should clearly articulate the reviewer’s 

concerns and contentions. The 

submission of timely and specific 

comments can affect a reviewer’s ability 

to participate in subsequent 

administrative review or judicial 

review. 

Comments received in response to 

this solicitation, including names and 

addresses of those who comment, will 

be part of the public record for this 

proposed action. Comments submitted 

anonymously will be accepted and 

considered; however, anonymous 

comments will not provide the 

respondent with standing to participate 

in subsequent administrative review or 

judicial review. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joanne Bonn, via phone at (208) 839– 

2211 or (208) 983–1950, or in person at 

304 Slate Creek Road, between the 

hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., PDT, 

Monday through Friday. 

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: 

Purpose and Need for Action 

In April 1996 the Nez Perce National 

Forest made the decision to authorize 

domestic sheep, horse/pack stock, and 

cattle grazing on the Allison-Berg 

allotment. This decision was 

accompanied by an Environmental 

Assessment which concluded that the 

action would have no significant 

impacts under the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and is 

consistent with the National Forest 

Management Act (NFMA). Under this 

decision, the permittee has been issued 

ten-year term grazing permits. The latest 

ten-year term grazing permit, issued in 

April 2006, allows for both a spring/ 

summer and a fall/winter domestic 

sheep grazing period. Incidental 

numbers of horses/pack stock and cattle 

are permitted to graze spring through 

fall. 

In prior NEPA/NFMA decision 

documentation for this allotment, no 

specific concerns related to the bighorn 

sheep were noted. New information and 

changed conditions related to bighorn 

sheep result in a need for the U.S. Forest 

Service to revisit and update the 

environmental effects analysis for this 

allotment. 

The Payette National Forest, which 

manages National Forest System lands 

south of this allotment, is finalizing an 

extensive analysis addressing bighorn 

sheep viability issues on that forest. In 

September, 2008 the Payette National 

Forest released the ‘‘Draft Supplement 

to the Final Environmental Impact 

Statement for the Southwest Idaho 

Ecogroup Land and Resource 

Management Plans.’’ This draft 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement (SEIS) discusses the effects of 

grazing domestic sheep within or near 

the range of bighorn sheep for both the 

Hell’s Canyon and Salmon River 

populations. Although no decision is 

being made in relation to the AllisonBerg allotment, the Payette National 

Forest is producing information that is 

directly pertinent to the update of the 

Nez Perce National Forest’s effects 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 83 / Friday, May 1, 2009 / Notices 20277 

analysis for the Allison-Berg allotment, 

including bighorn sheep habitat 

modeling, bighorn sheep population 

modeling, geographic population range 

modeling, quantitative risk assessment 

modeling, disease spread modeling and 

cumulative effects analysis. Current 

maps produced by the Payette National 

Forest and included in their DSEIS 

show the Allison-Berg allotment is 

located within the geographic 

population range of bighorn sheep. The 

allotment contains a substantial amount 

of modeled bighorn sheep habitat. The 

expected date for completion of a final 

SEIS by the Payette National Forest is 

December 2009. 

Bighorn sheep sightings since 2007 

and telemetry and GPS data from radiocollared bighorn sheep in a cooperative 

study begun in 2008 with the Nez Perce 

Tribe have confirmed both collared and 

uncollared bighorn sheep presence on 

the Allison-Berg allotment during both 

the spring/summer and the fall/winter 

grazing periods. 

On March 13, 2009 the Nez Perce 

National Forest prescribed non-use by 

domestic sheep on the Allison-Berg 

allotment for resource protection during 

the time needed to update the NFMA 

and NEPA analysis for the allotment. 

This decision to prescribe non-use was 

based on the following factors: (1) 

Continued sightings of bighorn sheep 

(including some that are now radiocollared) within and near the allotment, 

(2) the lack of identified and agreed to 

measures that would meet the objective 

of the State of Idaho Interim Strategy to 

ensure separation of bighorn sheep and 

domestic sheep, (3) data assembled to 

date on movement and distribution of 

radio-collared Salmon River bighorns 

has not provided the Forest with 

information that would enable 

development of BMPs to ensure 

separation, and (4) there is a need to 

obtain and utilize new information from 

the Payette NF analysis to update our 

decision documentation for the 

allotment. 

This Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS 

initiates the process to update our 

decision documentation for the AllisonBerg allotment. The expected date for 

publication of our draft EIS allows time 

for proper review and consideration of 

the Payette National Forest’s bighorn 

analysis as well as any additional GPS 

and telemetry data for the collared 

Salmon River bighorns. 

Proposed Action and Possible 

Alternatives 

The Salmon River Ranger District of 

the United States Forest Service 

proposes to authorize continued 

domestic sheep, horse/pack stock, and 

cattle grazing within the Allison-Berg 

allotment. Alternatives that may be 

considered include (1) Authorization of 

grazing under conditions identified in 

the existing ten-year term permit; (2) 

modification of grazing consistent with 

the Strategy for Managing Separation 

between Bighorn Sheep and Domestic 

Sheep and Goats in the Salmon River 

Area (SRSS); (3) grazing with additional 

mitigation measures to ensure 

separation of bighorn sheep and 

domestic sheep; and (4) no grazing. The 

project is located 3 miles east of Riggins, 

Idaho in the Allison, Berg, and Kelly 

Creek drainages on the north side of the 

Salmon River. 

Responsible Official 

Salmon River District Ranger. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

To determine whether to authorize 

grazing of domestic sheep on the 

Allison-Berg Allotment, and if so, under 

what conditions. 

Scoping Process 

This notice of intent initiates the 

scoping process, which guides the 

development of the environmental 

impact statement. 

It is important that reviewers provide 

their comments at such times and in 

such manner that they are useful to the 

agency’s preparation of the 

environmental impact statement. 

Therefore, comments should be 

provided prior to the close of the 

comment period and should clearly 

articulate the reviewer’s concerns and 

contentions. The submission of timely 

and specific comments can affect a 

reviewer’s ability to participate in 

subsequent administrative appeal or 

judicial review. 

Dated: April 20, 2009. 

Thomas K. Reilly, 

Acting Forest Supervisor. 

[FR Doc. E9–9500 Filed 4–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2009–0027] 

National Animal Identification System; 

Public Meetings 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of public meetings. 

SUMMARY: This is a notice to inform the 

public of seven upcoming meetings to 

discuss stakeholder concerns related to 

the implementation of the National 

Animal Identification System. The 

meetings are being organized by the 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service. 

DATES: The meetings will be held on 

May 14, 18, 20, 21, 22, and 27, and June 

1, 2009, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. 

ADDRESSES: The public meetings will be 

held in Harrisburg, PA (May 14), Pasco, 

WA (May 18), Austin, TX (May 20), 

Birmingham, AL (May 21), Louisville, 

KY (May 22), Storrs, CT (May 27), and 

Greeley, CO (June 1). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Adam Grow, Director, Surveillance and 

Identification Programs, National Center 

for Animal Health Programs, VS, 

APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 200, 

Riverdale, MD 20737; 301–734–3752. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

As part of its ongoing efforts to 

safeguard animal health, the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) 

initiated implementation of a National 

Animal Identification System (NAIS) in 

2004. The NAIS is a cooperative StateFederal-industry program administered 

by USDA’s Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS). The 

purpose of the NAIS is to provide a 

streamlined information system that 

will help producers and animal health 

officials respond quickly and effectively 

to animal disease events in the United 

States. 

The ultimate long-term goal of the 

NAIS is to provide State and Federal 

officials with the capability to identify 

all animals and premises that have had 

direct contact with a disease of concern 

within 48 hours after discovery. Meeting 

that goal requires a comprehensive 

animal-disease traceability 

infrastructure. An NAIS User Guide and 

a Business Plan, both available on our 

Web site at http:// 

animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/ 

animal_id/index.shtml, provide detailed 

information about our plans for 

implementing the system. 

Despite concerted efforts, APHIS has 

not been able to fully implement the 

NAIS. Many of the same issues that 

producers originally had with the 

system, such as the cost and impact on 

small farmers, privacy and 

confidentiality, and liability, continue 

to cause concern. 

In order to provide individuals and 

organizations an opportunity to discuss 

their concerns regarding the NAIS and 

offer potential solutions, we plan to 

hold several public meetings and to 

solicit comments via our Web site. Our 

goal is to gather feedback and input 

from a wide range of stakeholders to 

assist us in making an informed