42492 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 135 / Friday, July 15, 2022 / Notices 

1The White House, Building Resilient Supply 

Chains, Revitalizing American Manufacturing, and 

Fostering Broad-Based Growth, June 2021, p. 14. 

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/ 

statements-releases/2021/06/08/fact-sheet-bidenharris-administration-announces-supply-chaindisruptions-task-force-to-address-short-termsupply-chain-discontinuities/. 

Public Availability of Comments 

Written comments we receive become 

part of the administrative record 

associated with this action. Before 

including your address, phone number, 

email address, or other personal 

identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information—may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you can request in your comment 

that we withhold your personal 

identifying information from public 

review, we cannot guarantee that we 

will be able to do so. All submissions 

from organizations or businesses, and 

from individuals identifying themselves 

as representatives or officials of 

organizations or businesses, will be 

made available for public disclosure in 

their entirety. 

Next Steps 

If we decide to issue a permit to an 

applicant listed in this notice, we will 

publish a notice in the Federal Register. 

Authority 

We publish this notice under section 

10(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 

1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

seq.). 

Marilet A. Zablan, 

Regional Program Manager for Restoration 

and Endangered Species Classification, 

Pacific Region. 

[FR Doc. 2022–15132 Filed 7–14–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Office of the Secretary 

[Docket No. DO1–2022–0003; 223D0102DM, 

DS6CS00000, DLSN00000.000000, 

DX.6CS25] 

Request for Information To Inform 

Interagency Working Group on Mining 

Regulations, Laws, and Permitting 

AGENCY: Department of the Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of public listening 

sessions and extension of public 

comment period. 

SUMMARY: The Department of the 

Interior is announcing the dates of 

public listening sessions the Interagency 

Working Group on Mining Regulations, 

Laws, and Permitting is holding to 

gather information and develop 

recommendations for improving Federal 

hardrock mining regulations, laws, and 

permitting processes. We are also 

extending the comment period on our 

March 31, 2022, request for information 

notice announcing the formation of an 

interagency working group to gather 

information and develop 

recommendations for improving Federal 

hardrock mining regulations, laws, and 

permitting processes. 

DATES: The public comment period on 

our request for information notice that 

published on March 31, 2022, at 86 FR 

18811 is extended. Interested persons 

are invited to submit comments by 

11:59 p.m. August 30, 2022. 

The interagency group will host 

virtual public listening sessions at the 

dates and times below. 

• 12:00 p.m.–1:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, 

July 19th 

• 1:00 p.m.–2:30 p.m. ET Thursday, 

July 21st 

• 1:00 p.m.–2:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, July 

26th 

Please register at the following link to 

receive further communication 

regarding the details of the listening 

session, including an invite. 

https://blm.zoomgov.com/webinar/ 

register/WN_7aYgS_

MQQpSTKRoB88n03A 

https://blm.zoomgov.com/webinar/ 

register/WN_DECbin4eQ_

CwYEpEOM3lpQ 

https://blm.zoomgov.com/webinar/ 

register/WN_KUjEwhIQ5qB2ZGYtBbMYA 

Listening sessions may end before the 

time noted above if all those 

participating have completed their oral 

comments. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted through https://

www.regulations.gov and will be 

available for public viewing and 

inspection. In the Search box, enter the 

docket number presented above in the 

document headings. For best results, do 

not copy and paste the number; instead, 

type the docket number into the Search 

box using hyphens. Then, click on the 

Search button. You may submit a 

comment by clicking on ‘‘Comment.’’ 

Comments may also be submitted by 

mail using the following address: 

Bureau of Land Management, Division 

of Solid Minerals, 1849 C Street NW, 

Room 5645, Washington, DC 20240. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Steven Feldgus, Deputy Assistant 

Secretary, Land and Minerals 

Management, (202) 208–6734, or by 

email at miningreform@ios.doi.gov. 

Individuals in the United States who are 

deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have 

a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, 

TDD, or TeleBraille) to access 

telecommunications relay services for 

contacting Mr. Feldgus. Individuals 

outside the United States should use the 

relay services offered within their 

country to make international calls to 

the point-of-contact in the United 

States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

February 24, 2021, President Biden 

signed Executive Order (E.O.) 14017, 

‘‘America’s Supply Chains.’’ On June 8, 

2021, the White House released the 100- 

Day reviews directed by E.O. 14017, 

which included a recommendation for 

the Federal government to establish ‘‘an 

interagency team with expertise in mine 

permitting and environmental law to 

identify gaps in statutes and regulations 

that may need to be updated to ensure 

new production meets strong 

environmental standards throughout the 

lifecycle of the project; ensure 

meaningful community consultation 

and consultation with tribal nations, 

respecting the government-togovernment relationship, at all stages of 

the mining process; and examine 

opportunities to reduce time, cost, and 

risk of permitting without 

compromising these strong 

environmental and consultation 

benchmarks.’’ 1

On September 16, 2021, the 

Department of the Interior (Department) 

received a petition for rulemaking 

pursuant to the Department’s 

regulations at 43 CFR part 14 from 9 

Tribal and 31 conservation groups 

requesting ‘‘a rulemaking to strengthen 

and modernize [the Bureau of Land 

Management’s] regulations at 43 CFR 

part 3800 et seq.’’ 

On November 15, 2021, President 

Biden signed the Infrastructure 

Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA); section 

40206 of the IIJA, ‘‘Critical Minerals 

Supply Chains and Reliability,’’ directs 

the Secretaries of the Interior and 

Agriculture to submit a report to 

Congress by November 15, 2022, that 

‘‘identifies additional measures, 

including regulatory and legislative 

proposals, if appropriate, that would 

increase the timeliness of permitting 

activities for the exploration and 

development of domestic critical 

minerals.’’ 

To respond to these directives and the 

rulemaking petition, the Department has 

created an interagency working group 

(IWG) on Federal hardrock mining laws, 

regulations, and permitting, chaired by 

the Department and including the 

Department of Agriculture through the 

U.S. Forest Service; the Environmental 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 135 / Friday, July 15, 2022 / Notices 42493 

Protection Agency; the Army Corps of 

Engineers; the Departments of 

Commerce, Energy, Defense, and State; 

the Council on Environmental Quality; 

and the National Economic Council. For 

the purposes of the IWG, ‘‘hardrock’’ 

minerals are those mineral resources 

that are subject to disposal under the 

Mining Law of 1872. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, email address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information—may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you can ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Tommy Beaudreau, 

Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of the 

Interior. 

[FR Doc. 2022–15114 Filed 7–14–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4334–63–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

Request for Information (RFI) on 

Federal Old-growth and Mature Forests 

AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture 

(USDA); Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior (DOI). 

ACTION: Request for information. 

SUMMARY: The United States Department 

of Agriculture (USDA), United States 

Forest Service (Forest Service), and the 

United States Department of the Interior 

(DOI), Bureau of Land Management 

(BLM), invite public comment to inform 

the response to Executive Order 

Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, 

Communities, and Local Economies 

which requires USDA and DOI to define 

old-growth and mature forests on 

Federal lands; complete an inventory 

and make it publicly available; 

coordinate conservation and wildfire 

risk reduction activities; identify threats 

to mature and old-growth forests; 

develop policies to address threats; 

develop Agency-specific reforestation 

goals by 2030; develop climate-informed 

reforestation plans; and develop 

recommendations for community-led 

local and regional economic 

development opportunities. 

DATES: A webinar will be held for 

interested members of the public on July 

21, 2022. More information about this 

session (including specific time and 

how to attend) will be posted to the 

Forest Service website (https://

www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/oldgrowth-forests). Comments must be 

received in writing by August 15, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: The webinar will be held on 

Microsoft Teams web conferencing 

software. The webinar will be recorded. 

Information about how to attend the 

webinar, presentation materials used 

during the webinar, and the webinar 

recording will be posted to: https://

www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/oldgrowth-forests. Written comments 

concerning this notice may be submitted 

electronically to: https://

cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/ 

CommentInput?project=NP-3239. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jamie Barbour, Assistant Director, 

Ecosystem Management Coordination, 

(503) 708–9138, roy.barbour@usda.gov. 

Individuals who use telecommunication 

devices for the deaf and hard of hearing 

(TDD) may call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS) at 1–800–877–8339, 24 

hours a day, every day of the year, 

including holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

purpose of this RFI is to inform the 

public and gather feedback on potential 

future implementation efforts associated 

with provisions of Executive Order 

(E.O.) 14072: Strengthening the Nation’s 

Forests, Communities, and Local 

Economies, issued April 22, 2022. The 

focus of this current request for 

information is to inform the response to 

E.O. 14072 Section 2(b) specifically, 

which calls on the Secretaries of 

Agriculture and the Interior, within one 

year, to define, identify, and complete 

an inventory of old-growth and mature 

forests on Federal lands, accounting for 

regional and ecological variations, as 

appropriate, and making the inventory 

publicly available. 

Background. E.O. 14072 Section 2(b) 

states that: ‘‘The Secretary of the 

Interior, with respect to public lands 

managed by the Bureau of Land 

Management, and the Secretary of 

Agriculture, with respect to National 

Forest System lands, shall, within one 

year of the date of this order, define, 

identify, and complete an inventory of 

old-growth and mature forests on 

Federal lands, accounting for regional 

and ecological variations, as 

appropriate, and shall make such 

inventory publicly available.’’ 

USDA and DOI recognize definition 

development as a pivotal first step in 

meeting the subsequent identification 

and inventory requirements of E.O. 

14072. Development of the definition, 

followed by identification and inventory 

will then be used to inform subsequent 

needs identified in E.O. 14072 Section 

2(c) (e.g., conservation and wildfire risk 

reduction activities, including 

consideration of climate-smart 

stewardship of mature and old-growth 

forests; analysis of the threats to mature 

and old-growth forests on Federal lands, 

including from wildfires and climate 

change; and development of policies to 

institutionalize climate-smart 

management and conservation strategies 

that address threats to mature and oldgrowth forests on Federal land). 

This effort is also directly connected 

to the Secretary’s Memorandum 1077– 

004: Climate Resilience and Carbon 

Stewardship of America’s National 

Forests and Grasslands (issued June 23, 

2022, by the Secretary of Agriculture, 

https://www.usda.gov/directives/sm1077-004). The Secretary’s 

Memorandum 1077–004 specifically 

references E.O. 14072 implementation 

and other actions. 

Defining old growth and mature 

forests for purposes of conducting an 

inventory as required under E.O. 14072 

Section 2(b) does not, by itself, change 

any current forest management policies 

or practices. Developing policies to 

institutionalize climate-smart 

management and conservation strategies 

that address threats to mature and oldgrowth forests on Federal land as stated 

in E.O. 14072 Section 2(c) will follow 

completion of definition development, 

identification, and inventory. 

Defining old-growth and mature 

forests has evolved with our scientific 

understanding of these unique 

ecosystems. Previous definitions 

include a general old-growth one 

included in a 1989, Forest Service 

Chief’s letter to Regional Foresters 

which reads: ‘‘Old-growth forests are 

ecosystems distinguished by old trees 

and related structural attributes. Oldgrowth encompasses the later stages of 

stand development that typically differ 

from earlier stages in a variety of 

characteristics, which may include tree 

size, accumulations of large dead woody 

material, number of canopy layers, 

species composition, and ecosystem 

function.’’ Today, most scientists agree 

that old-growth forests differ widely in 

character with age, geographic location, 

climate, site productivity, and 

characteristic disturbance regime. 

Mature and old-growth forests also 

reflect diverse spiritual and cultural 

values for these special places. 

Gathering and synthesizing oldgrowth forest information at a national 

scale continues to progress. Data sources 

exist, including the Forest Service 

Inventory and Analysis Program. Yet, 


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