[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 84 (Wednesday, May 1, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25473-25475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-10312]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

[OMB Number 1010-0184]


Information Collection: Northern Alaska Native Community Surveys; 
Proposed Collection for OMB Review; Comment Request MMAA104000

ACTION: 60-day notice.

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SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the 
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is inviting comments on a 
collection of information that we will submit to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The information 
collection request (ICR) pertains to two surveys conducted in northern 
coastal Alaska communities.

DATES: Submit written comments by July 1, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comments on this ICR 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); or 703-787-1209 (fax). 
Please reference ICR 1010-0184 in your comment and include your name 
and return address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arlene Bajusz, Office of Policy, 
Regulations, and Analysis at (703) 787-1025. You may also request a 
free copy of the surveys. For more information on the surveys, contact 
Chris Campbell in the BOEM Alaska Regional Office at (907) 334-5264.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    OMB Control Number: 1010-0184.

[[Page 25474]]

    Title: Northern Alaska Native Community Surveys.
    Abstract: With this information collection renewal, the Bureau of 
Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is updating the target communities for 
the original survey and requesting approval of a second survey. The 
BOEM conducts these surveys because the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) 
Lands Act (OCSLA) [Pub. L. 95-372, Sec. 20], and its subsequent 
amendments, requires the Secretary of the Department of the Interior 
(DOI) to monitor and assess the impacts of resource development 
activities in Federal waters on human, marine, and coastal 
environments. The OCSLA amendments authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to conduct studies in areas or regions of lease sales to 
ascertain the ``environmental impacts on the marine and coastal 
environments of the outer Continental shelf and the coastal areas which 
may be affected by oil and gas development'' (43 U.S.C. 1346).
    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
4321-4347) requires that all Federal agencies use a systematic, 
interdisciplinary approach to ensure the integrated use of the natural 
and social sciences in any planning and decision making that may have 
an effect on the human environment. The Council on Environmental 
Quality's Regulations for Implementing Procedural Provisions of NEPA 
(40 CFR 1500-1508) state that the ``human environment'' is to be 
``interpreted comprehensively'' to include ``the natural and physical 
environment and the relationship of people with that environment'' (40 
CFR 1508.14). An action's ``aesthetic, historic, cultural, economic, 
social or health'' effects must be assessed, ``whether direct, 
indirect, or cumulative'' (40 CFR 1508.8).
    The BOEM is the DOI agency that conducts OCS lease sales and 
monitors and mitigates adverse impacts that might be associated with 
offshore resource development. The BOEM Environmental Studies Program 
implements and manages the responsibilities of research. The surveys in 
this collection will facilitate the meeting of DOI/BOEM information 
needs on subsistence food harvest and sharing activities in various 
coastal Alaska areas, with specific focus on the coastal Alaska 
communities in the North Slope area.
    This information collection (IC) request involves two data 
collection surveys. The first survey, Study of Sharing to Assess 
Community Resilience (Resiliency Study), will assess the 
vulnerabilities of North Slope coastal communities to the potential 
effects of offshore oil and gas development on subsistence food harvest 
and sharing activities. It will investigate the resilience of local 
sharing networks that structure contemporary subsistence-cash economies 
using survey research methods that involve residents of four 
communities most proximate to proposed exploration areas (Barrow, 
Nuiqsut, Point Lay, Point Hope). The second survey, Social Indicators 
in Coastal Alaska: Arctic Communities (Social Indicators Study), will 
assess the well-being and living conditions of residents in six North 
Slope coastal communities (Barrow, Point Hope, Wainwright, Nuiqsut, 
Kaktovik, Point Lay).
    The BOEM will use the information collected to learn about local 
social systems and well-being in a way that may shape development 
strategies and serve as an interim baseline for impact monitoring to 
compare against future research in these areas. Without these data, 
BOEM will not have sufficient information to make informed oil and gas 
leasing and development decisions for these areas. The studies will 
help BOEM identify and mitigate impacts of offshore oil and gas 
exploration and development on Native communities.
    Survey Instruments: The research will be collected from two 
voluntary surveys. The Resilience Study will be given to each head of 
household in the study communities to collect information about the 
subsistence (harvest data) and sharing networks of the communities. The 
Social Indicators Study will be given to a randomly selected adult in 
each selected household in the study communities to collect information 
about well-being and living conditions. Survey questions are tailored 
to each community as appropriate, depending on the location of the 
community and surrounding plants and animals.
    Interview Methods: The interviews for each survey 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 between the 
surveyor and the person interviewed. Telephone interviews have not been 
successful on the North Slope. Each respondent will be paid an 
honorarium for taking part in the study. Responses are voluntary.
    Frequency: One-time event for each study.
    Description of Respondents: Respondents are members of the Alaskan 
coastal communities in the North Slope area.
    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden: With this 
renewal, we are updating the target communities for the Resiliency 
Survey and requesting approval of the second survey, Social Indicators 
Study.

                                                  Burden Table
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     Number of       Estimated
                             Survey                               Estimated hour    households/    annual burden
                                                                      burden        respondents        hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Resiliency Survey...............................................            1.25             782            978*
Social Indicators Survey........................................               1           1,001           1,001
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................  ..............           1,783           1,979
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* Rounded.

    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Non-Hour Cost Burden: We have 
identified no non-hour paperwork cost burdens for this collection.
    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: We invite comments on: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its 
duties, including whether

[[Page 25475]]

the information is useful; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of 
the burden of the proposed collection of information; (3) ways to 
enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden on the respondents, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    We will summarize written responses to this notice and address them 
in our submission for OMB approval. As a result of your comments, we 
will make any necessary adjustments to the burden in our submission to 
OMB.
    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: April 25, 2013.
Deanna Meyer-Pietruszka,
Chief, Office of Policy, Regulations, and Analysis.
[FR Doc. 2013-10312 Filed 4-30-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P