[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 16, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3447-3448]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-00763]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

[OMB Number 1010-0181]


Information Collection: Southern Alaska Sharing Network and 
Subsistence Study; Submitted for OMB Review; Comment Request

ACTION: 30-day notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the 
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is notifying the public that 
we have submitted an information collection request (ICR) to the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR 
pertains to conducting a survey on subsistence and sharing networks in 
coastal Alaska. This notice provides the public a second opportunity to 
comment on the paperwork burden of this collection.

DATES: Submit written comments by February 15, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments on this ICR to the Desk Officer for the 
Department of the Interior at OMB-OIRA at (202) 395-5806 (fax) or 
[email protected] (email). Please provide a copy of your 
comments to the BOEM Information Collection Clearance Officer, Arlene 
Bajusz, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 381 Elden Street, HM-3127, 
Herndon, Virginia 20170 (mail) or [email protected] (email). 
Please reference ICR 1010-0181 in your comment and include your name 
and return address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arlene Bajusz, Office of Policy, 
Regulations, and Analysis at [email protected] (email) or (703) 
787-1025 (phone). You may review the ICR online at http://www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to review Department of the 
Interior collections under review by OMB.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0181.
    Title: Southern Alaska Sharing Network and Subsistence Study.
    Abstract: The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), under the 
Department of the Interior (DOI), is the Federal administrative agency 
that conducts OCS lease sales and monitors and mitigates adverse 
impacts that might be associated with offshore resource development. 
Within BOEM, the Environmental Studies Program implements and manages 
the responsibilities of research. This study will facilitate the 
meeting of DOI/BOEM information needs on subsistence food harvest and 
sharing activities in various coastal Alaska areas.
    Planning areas for potential resource development in Alaska can 
include large geographic areas with diverse, abundant, and 
environmentally sensitive resources. Within these areas, the DOI's 
Proposed OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program considers that there will be 
an oil and gas lease sale in the future. These proposed sale areas or 
adjacent areas support major productive commercial and subsistence 
fisheries; provide habitat to numerous marine mammals and land animals, 
as well as plant harvesting; and are a significant migration and 
staging area for internationally important waterfowl. Numerous 
communities in the State of Alaska rely heavily on subsistence 
fisheries.
    This study assesses the vulnerabilities of several coastal 
communities in southern Alaska as to the potential effects of offshore 
oil and gas development on subsistence food harvest and sharing 
activities. It investigates the resilience of local sharing networks 
that structure contemporary subsistence-cash economies using research 
methods that involve the residents of these communities most proximate 
to the future sale area(s).
    The BOEM will use the information collected to gain knowledge about 
local social systems that will help shape development leasing 
strategies and serve as an interim baseline for impact monitoring to 
compare against future research in these areas. Without this data, BOEM 
will not have sufficient information to make informed leasing and 
development decisions for these areas.
    Survey Instrument: The research will be collected from a survey 
administered to each head of household in the communities to collect 
information about the subsistence (harvest data) and sharing networks 
of the communities. The information under this collection will be 
obtained through personal interviews that are voluntary.
    Interview Methods: The interviews for each study will be conducted 
in person in a setting most comfortable for the respondents. This 
personal method is more expensive and time consuming for the 
researchers, but these drawbacks are outweighed by improvements in the 
quality of information obtained and the rapport established. Telephone 
interviews have not been successful in rural Alaska. Each respondent 
will be paid an honorarium for taking part in the study. Responses are 
voluntary and confidential.
    Frequency: One-time event for each study.
    Description of Respondents: Approximately 548 respondents from 
southern Alaska coastal communities.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden: The estimated 
annual hour burden for this collection is 411 hours. We estimate each 
survey will take about 45 minutes.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Non-Hour Cost Burden: We have 
identified no non-hour cost burdens for this collection.

[[Page 3448]]

    Public Disclosure Statement: The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) 
provides that an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of 
information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. 
Until OMB approves a collection of information, you are not obligated 
to respond.
    Comments: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et 
seq.) requires each agency ``* * * to provide notice * * * and 
otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies 
concerning each proposed collection of information * * *'' Agencies 
must specifically solicit comments to: (a) Evaluate whether the 
collection is necessary or useful; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) enhance the 
quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (d) minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of 
technology.
    To comply with the public consultation process, on August 22, 2012, 
BOEM published a Federal Register notice (77 FR 50712) announcing that 
we would submit this ICR to OMB for approval. The notice provided the 
required 60-day comment period. We received one comment. The Marine 
Mammal Commission commended BOEM for including science-based 
assessments of subsistence food harvest and sharing activities in 
Alaskan communities as part of its Environmental Studies Program and 
therefore supports the collection of information. Comments are accepted 
at any time.
    Public Availability of Comments: 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.

    Dated: December 6, 2012.
Deanna Meyer-Pietruszka,
Chief, Office of Policy, Regulations, and Analysis.
[FR Doc. 2013-00763 Filed 1-15-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P