19906 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 87 / Friday, May 3, 1996 / Notices

of its value to society; interior forest

habitat; late-seral species; Threatened,

Endangered, and Sensitive species, and

survey and manage species; water

quality; aquatic habitat; current and

future recreational opportunities;

archaeological sites from landing

construction and road reconstruction;

and introduction and dispersal of

noxious weeds and aggressive nonnative species.

The 1990 Umpqua National Forest

Land and Resource Management Plan,

as amended, allocates the Little River

Watershed into an Adaptive

Management Area (AMA). The Forest

Plan’s overall objective for AMA’s is to

learn how to manage on an ecosystem

basis in terms of both technical and

social challenges, and in a manner

consistent with applicable laws. For

Little River specifically, the emphasis is

placed on ‘‘development and testing of

approaches to integration of intensive

timber production with restoration and

maintenance of high quality riparian

habitat ’’.

Public participation has consisted of

open houses, field trips, and scoping

conducted during the environmental

assessment process. Numerous

comments have been received and have

been incorporated and reflect in the

issues described above. Additional

public comments will be received until

June 1, 1996. The information collected

will be used in preparation of the draft

EIS. The scoping process includes the

following:

1. Identification of issues.

2. Identification of key issues.

3. Elimination of insignificant issues,

issues which have been covered by a

relevant previous environmental

process, and issues that could be

successfully mitigated.

4. Exploration of additional

alternatives based on the key issues

identified during the scoping process.

5. Identification of potential

environmental effects of the proposed

action and alternatives (i.e. direct,

indirect, and cumulative effects and

connected actions).

The draft EIS is expected to be filed

with the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) and to be available for

public review by November, 1996. At

that time, copies of the draft EIS will be

distributed to interested and affected

agencies, organizations, and members of

the public for their review and

comment. EPA will publish a Notice of

Availability of the draft EIS in the

Federal Register.

The comment period on the draft EIS

will be 45 days from the date the EPA

notice appears in the Federal Register.

It is very important that those interested

in the management of the Umpqua

National Forest participate at that time.

The Forest Service believes it is

important to give reviewers notice at

this early stage of several court rulings

related to public participation in the

environmental review process. First,

reviewers of the draft EIS’s must

structure their participation in the

environmental review of the proposal so

that it is meaningful and alerts the

agency to the reviewers position and

contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear

Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,553

(1978). Also, environmental objections

that could be raised at the draft EIS

stage but that are not raised until after

completion of the final EIS may be

waived or dismissed by the courts. City

of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 f. 2d 1016,

1022 (9th Cir, 1986) and Wisconsin

Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp.

1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of

these court rulings, it is very important

that those interested in this proposed

action participate by the close of the

comment period so that substantive

comments and objections are made

available to the Forest Service at a time

when it can meaningfully consider them

and respond to them in the final EIS.

To assist the Forest Service in

identifying and considering issues and

concerns on the proposed action,

comments on the draft EIS should be as

specific as possible. It is also helpful if

comments refer to specific pages or

chapters of the draft EIS. Comments

may also address the adequacy of the

draft EIS or the merits of the alternatives

formulated and discussed in the

statement.

The final EIS is scheduled to be

completed by February, 1997. In the

final EIS, the Forest Service is required

to respond to comments and responses

received during the comment period

that pertain to the environmental

consequences discussed in the draft EIS,

as well as applicable laws, regulations,

and policies considered in making the

decision regarding this proposal. The

lead agency is the Forest Service. Don

Ostby, Forest Supervisor, Umpqua

National Forest, is the responsible

official. As the responsible official, he

will document the decision and reasons

for the decision in the Record of

Decision. That decision will be subject

to Forest Service appeal regulations (36

CFR Part 217).

Dated: April 25, 1996.

Don Ostby,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 96–11029 Filed 5–2–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

Rural Utilities Service

Information Collection Activity;

Comment Request

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended), the

Rural Utilities Service (RUS) invites

comments on this information

collection for which RUS intends to

request approval from the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB).

DATES: Comments on this notice must be

received by July 2, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dawn D. Wolfgang, Program Support

and Regulatory Analysis Group, Rural

Utilities Service, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, 14th & Independence Ave.,

SW., AG Box 1522, Washington, DC

20250–1522. Telephone: (202) 720–

0812. FAX: (202) 720–4120.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Request for Approval to Sell

Capital Assets.

OMB Control Number: 0572–0020.

Type of Request: Revision of a

Currently Approved Information

Collection.

Abstract: A borrower’s assets provide

the security for a Government loan. The

selling of assets reduces the security and

increases the risk to the Government.

RUS Form 369 allows the borrower to

seek agency permission to sell some of

its assets. The form collects detailed

information regarding the proposed sale

of a portion of the borrower’s systems.

RUS electric utility borrowers complete

this form to request RUS approval in

order to sell capital assets with a fair

market value is 10 percent of the

borrower’s net utility plant.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting

burden for this collection of information

is estimated to average 3 hours per

response.

Respondents: Small business or

organizations.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 5.

Estimated Number of Responses per

Respondent: 1.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on

Respondents: 15.

Copies of this information collection,

and related form and instructions, can

be obtained from Dawn Wolfgang,

Program Support and Regulatory

Analysis Group, at (202) 720–0812.

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether

this proposed collection of information

is necessary for the proper performance

of the functions of the agency, including
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 87 / Friday, May 3, 1996 / Notices 19907

whether the information will have

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of burden 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 may be sent to:

F. Lamont Heppe, Jr., Director, Program

Support and Regulatory Analysis Group,

Rural Utilities Service, U.S. Department

of Agriculture, AG Box 1522, 14th &

Independence Ave., SW., Washington,

DC 20250–1522. FAX: (202) 720–4120.

All responses to this notice will be

summarized and included in the request

for OMB approval. All comments will

also become a matter of public record:

Dated: April 29, 1996.

Wally Beyer,

Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.

[FR Doc. 96–11017 Filed 5–2–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–15–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 041996A]

Marine Mammals

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of scientific research

permit no. 999 (P5I)

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Dr.

Donald B. Siniff, University of

Minnesota, 1987 Upper Buford Circle,

St. Paul, MN 55108, has been issued a

permit to ‘‘take’’ by Level A harassment,

Hawaiian monk seals (Monachus

schauinslandi) for purposes of scientific

research.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following offices:

Permits Division, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West

Highway, Room 13130, Silver Spring,

MD 20910 (301/713–2289);

Director, Southwest Region, NMFS,

501 W. Ocean Boulevard, Suite 4200,

Long Beach, CA 90802–4213 (310/980–

4016); and

Protected Species Program

Coordinator, Pacific Area Office,

Southwest Region, NMFS, 2570 Dole

Street, Room 106, Honolulu, HI 96822–

2396 (808/973–2987).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

January 30, 1996, notice was published

in the Federal Register (61 FR 3002)

that the above-named applicant had

submitted a request for a scientific

research permit to ‘‘take’’ by Level A

harassment (i.e., capture, restrain,

chemically sedate, instrument, release,

and recapture for instrument removal)

up to 20 adult male, and up to 10 adult

female Hawaiian monk seals (Monachus

schauinslandi) from the population at

French Frigate Shoals, over an 18-month

period. Up to five additional animals

(regardless of gender) were also

requested to be taken by Level A

harassment in the event that attachment

procedures must be prematurely

terminated. The objective of the

research is to investigate Hawaiian

monk seal movements and foraging

patterns using satellite-linked timedepth recorders to characterize habitat

use. Authorization for the taking of

adult males has been granted, with

authorization for the taking of adult

females contingent upon future review

by both the National Marine Fisheries

Service and the Hawaiian Monk Seal

Recovery Team. The requested permit

has been issued under the authority of

the Marine Mammal Protection Act of

1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et

seq.), the Regulations Governing the

Taking and Importing of Marine

Mammals (50 CFR Part 216), the

Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973,

as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and

the Regulations Governing the Taking,

Importing, and Exporting of Endangered

Fish and Wildlife (50 CFR part 222).

Issuance of this permit, as required by

the ESA, was based on a finding that

such permit: (1) Was applied for in good

faith; (2) will not operate to the

disadvantage of the endangered species

which is the subject of this permit; and

(3) is consistent with the purposes and

policies set forth in section 2 of the

ESA.

Dated: April 26, 1996.

Ann D. Terbush,

Chief, Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 96–10994 Filed 5–2–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

[I.D. 041996C]

Marine Mammals; Scientific Research

Permit No. 1000 (P66K)

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of permit.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

Alaska Department of Fish and Game,

Division of Wildlife Conservation, P.O.

Box 3–2000, Juneau, AK 99802, has

been issued a permit to take up to 3000

harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) and up to

600 spotted seals (Phoca largha) for

purposes of scientific research.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following office(s):

Permits Division, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West

Highway, Room 13130, Silver Spring,

MD 20910 (301/713–2289); and

Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box

21668, Juneau, AK 99802–1668 (907/

586–7221).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March

22, 1996, notice was published in the

Federal Register (61 FR 11809) that a

request for a scientific research permit

to take harbor seals and spotted seals

had been submitted by the above-named

organization. The requested permit has

been issued under the authority of the

Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972,

as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the

Regulations Governing the Taking and

Importing of Marine Mammals (50 CFR

part 216).

Dated: April 24, 1996.

Ann D. Terbush,

Chief, Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 96–10995 Filed 5–2–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

[I.D. 041996B]

Marine Mammals; Permit No. 838

(P535)

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Receipt of application for

modification.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

Stephen Insley, Smithsonian Institution,

National Zoological Park, Washington,

DC 20008, has requested a modification

to permit No. 838.

DATES: Written comments must be

received on or before June 3, 1996.

ADDRESSES: The modification request

and related documents are available for

review upon written request or by

appointment in the following office(s):