[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 57 (Friday, March 23, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12715-12716]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-06001]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection: Stewardship Mapping and Assessment 
Project (STEW-MAP)

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and 
organizations on the renewal of the Stewardship Mapping and Assessment 
Project (STEW-MAP) information collection.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before May 22, 2018 
to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will 
be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Comments concerning this notice should be addressed to Erika 
Svendsen, USDA Forest Service, NYC Urban Field Station, 431 Walter Reed 
Rd., Bayside, NY 11359. Comments also may be submitted by email to 
[email protected]. Please put ``Comments re: STEW-MAP'' in the 
subject line. Comments submitted in response to this notice may be made 
available to the public through relevant websites and upon request. For 
this reason, please do not include in your comments information of a 
confidential nature, such as sensitive personal information or 
proprietary information. If you send an email comment, your email 
address will be automatically captured and included as part of the 
comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the 
internet. Please note that responses to this public comment request 
containing any routine notice about the confidentiality of the 
communication will be treated as public comments that may be made 
available to the public notwithstanding the inclusion of the routine 
notice.
    The public may inspect the comments received at USDA Forest 
Service, USDA Forest Service, NYC Urban Field Station, 431 Walter Reed 
Rd., Bayside, NY 11359 during normal business hours. Visitors are 
encouraged to call ahead to 718-225-3061 to facilitate entry to the 
building. The public may request an electronic copy of the draft 
supporting statement and/or any comments received be sent via return 
email. Requests should be emailed to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erika Svendsen at 718-225-3061 x301. 
Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) may 
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 
twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year, including holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Information Collection Clearance for the Stewardship Mapping 
and Assessment Project (STEW-MAP).
    OMB Number: 0596-0240.
    Type of Request: Renewal.
    Abstract: Local environmental stewardship groups are essential for 
ensuring the vibrancy of natural areas in cities, suburbs, towns, and 
rural areas, including National Forest lands and the surrounding areas. 
Natural areas provide a range of benefits and services including storm 
water management, air pollution removal, urban heat island mitigation, 
carbon storage, wildlife habitat, recreation opportunities, stress 
reduction, aesthetic beauty, noise reduction, increased property 
values, and reduced energy use. The work of civic environmental 
stewards leverages the efforts of local government officials in 
maintaining these resources, especially in lean budget times. Civic 
stewardship organizations, including nonprofits, faith-based groups, 
formal and informal community groups, and coalitions, are often 
involved in, for example, planting trees, organizing community gardens, 
offering environment-themed classes, engaging with local officials on 
behalf of the environment, monitoring plants or animals, and cleaning 
up nearby parks or natural areas. People who do this work are stewards 
of their local environments, even if they do not normally use the word 
``steward'' or think of what they do as ``stewardship.''
    The roles of civic environmental stewards and their levels of 
engagement and commitment are often not understood by land managers and 
other decision makers. This means that the valuable services they 
provide may not be recognized and built on to full advantage. In 
addition, stewards themselves may not be aware of others doing similar 
work in their area so there may be lost opportunities for collaboration 
between groups.
    The purpose of this research is to gather information on civic 
stewardship groups and their efforts such as where they work, the types 
of projects they focus on, and how they are organize. This information 
will be summarized and made publicly available online for use by policy 
makers, land managers, environmental professionals, the general public, 
stewards themselves, and other natural resource management 
stakeholders.
    There are three phases to a STEW-MAP project:
     Phase One (Census) is a census of stewardship groups in 
the target region, generating a master list of known stewardship groups 
and their contact information.
     Phase Two (Survey) is a survey which is distributed to all 
of the organizations identified in Phase One to collect information 
about what they work on, how their group is structured, where they 
work, and what other groups they collaborate with.
     Phase Three (Follow-Up Interviews) is follow-up interviews 
with key responding organizations identified during Phase Two to 
collect more detailed information about the organizations and their 
histories.
    A primary goal of STEW-MAP is to visualize stewardship activities, 
which can span across the urban to rural landscape. The geographic 
information provided by stewardship groups on the survey (Phase Two) 
will allow the researchers to do a spatial analysis of where 
stewardship groups are working, identify ``gaps'' where little to no 
stewardship is being done, and provide locally relevant geographic 
information like what kinds of stewardship groups are working in 
particular places. This geographic information will be displayed on 
maps to show stewards, local land managers, policy makers, and other 
interested stakeholders how stewardship work is distributed across the 
region with the goal of encouraging collaboration, building innovative 
partnerships, increasing organizational capacities, and generally 
making stewardship efforts more effective.
    Information from STEW-MAP will help planners, natural resource 
decision makers, land managers, and the general public work across 
property jurisdictions, management regimes and political boundaries to 
conserve, protect, and manage natural resources effectively. It will 
also be used to

[[Page 12716]]

enhance local resource management efforts by helping public officials, 
land managers, and civic stewards connect to local stewardship groups.
    STEW-MAP is being led by researchers from the Forest Service in 
partnership with researchers from universities and nongovernment 
organizations. The exact makeup of the research team will vary from 
location to location where STEW-MAP is conducted. The Forest Service 
Research and Development branch is authorized to conduct basic 
scientific research to improve the health of forests and rangelands 
involving State, Federal, Tribal agencies, and private landowners 
across multiple jurisdictions including in urban areas. The study is 
aligned with the U.S. Department of Agriculture policy of an ``all-
lands approach'' to resource management, which ``requires land managers 
to work across jurisdictions and land-use types, viewing forests 
landscapes as an integrated whole, both ecologically and socially'' 
(National Report on Sustainable Forests, 2010). This all lands approach 
applies to urban ecosystems as well. Our project goals are also 
consistent with the Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) 
program, which focus on urban forest ecosystems and the role of 
stewardship and trail connections to parks and public lands that 
promote health and sustainability for urban residents. This study seeks 
to identify opportunities for stewardship organizations to better 
collaborate and, thus, be more effective in the stewardship of all 
natural areas.
    Due to local geographical and/or cultural differences, and to meet 
the needs of any particular collaborative effort, we may tailor the 
survey and interview questions to accommodate the unique requirements 
of individual communities.
    Affected Public: Representatives from civic environmental 
stewardship groups, and from State, local, or Tribal Governments.
    Estimate of Burden per Response: 15 to 60 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents:
    Phase One (Census): 600.
    Phase Two (Survey): 15,000.
    Phase Three (Follow-up Interviews): 300.
    Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 7,925 hours.

Comment is Invited

    Comment is invited on: (1) Whether this collection of information 
is necessary for the stated purposes and the proper performance of the 
functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have 
practical or scientific utility; (2) the accuracy of the Agency's 
estimate of the burden of the 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 names 
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record. 
Comments will be summarized and included in the submission request 
toward Office of Management and Budget approval.

    Dated: March 13, 2018.
Carlos Rodriguez-Franco,
Deputy Chief, Research & Development.
[FR Doc. 2018-06001 Filed 3-22-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3411-15-P