[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 131 (Tuesday, July 13, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36698-36700]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-14857]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection; Clearance for the 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 extension without revisions of a currently 
approved information collection, Information Collection Clearance for 
the Stewardship Mapping and Assessment Project (STEW-MAP).

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before September 13, 
2021 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 via 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

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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 draft supporting statement and/or 
comments received at USDA Forest Service, NYC Urban Field Station, 431 
Walter Reed Road, 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, Northern Research 
Station, 718-225-3061 extension 102 or [email protected]. 
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.
    Expiration Date of Approval: November 30, 2021.
    Type of Request: Extension without revisions.
    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 governments in maintaining these 
resources, especially in lean budget times. Civic stewardship 
organizations, including nonprofit organizations, faith-based groups, 
formal and informal community groups, and coalitions, are often 
involved in environmental stewardship efforts. For example, these 
groups often plant trees, organize community gardens, offer 
environment-themed classes, engage with local officials on behalf of 
the environment, monitor plants or animals, and clean up nearby parks 
and/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 organized. 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 in Phase Two (Survey) 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 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 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 Forest Service researchers in partnership 
with researchers from universities and nongovernmental 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 
various collaborative approaches to landscape-scale resource management 
that work across jurisdictions and land-use types, viewing forests as 
social-ecological systems. Our project goals are also consistent with 
the Forest Service's 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 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.

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    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 if provided, will be a matter of public record. Comments 
will be summarized and included in the submission request for Office of 
Management and Budget approval.

Alexander L. Friend,
Deputy Chief, Research & Development.
[FR Doc. 2021-14857 Filed 7-12-21; 8:45 am]
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