[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51111-51112]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19766]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection: Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, GA

AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture (USDA).

ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
USDA Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals 
and organizations on the extension with revisions of a currently 
approved information collection, Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, 
Georgia.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before November 15, 
2021 to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date 
will be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Commenters are encouraged to submit comments by email, if 
possible. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected].
     Mail: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, Forestry Sciences Lab, 
320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, Forestry 
Sciences Lab, 320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602.
     Facsimile: (706) 559-4266.
    The public may inspect comments received at Forestry Sciences Lab, 
320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602, during normal business hours. 
Visitors are encouraged to call ahead to (706) 559-4270 to facilitate 
entry to the building.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, USDA Forest 
Service, Southern Research Station, by phone at (706) 559-4270 or email 
at [email protected]. Individuals who use telecommunication 
devices for the hearing-impaired (TDD) may call the Federal Relay 
Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 twenty-four hours a day, every day of 
the year, including holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, GA.
    OMB Number: 0596-0237.
    Expiration Date of Approval: February 28, 2022.
    Type of Request: Extension with revisions of a currently approved 
information collection.
    Abstract: This information collection will continue to gather data 
on City of Atlanta residents' interest in and engagement with the urban 
forest in the city. This information collection focuses more narrowly 
on urban forest patches, a collection or stand of trees, in public 
spaces. Engagement is defined as residents' interest in and awareness 
of urban forest patches and resident participation in decisions about 
how the patches should be maintained or repurposed. The information 
collection also gathers data on social factors such as neighborhood 
transiency and perception of neighborhood conditions, conceptualized as 
collective efficacy and social cohesion. The neighborhood conditions 
data provides information on the broader context from which people make 
decisions about engaging with urban forest patches. If neighborhood 
transiency (i.e., frequent involuntary moving of people in and out of 
neighborhoods) is problematic in communities or people lack basic needs 
such as access to healthy foods or safe neighborhoods, it is unlikely 
that they would demonstrate a high degree of engagement with the city's 
urban forest.
    This collection extends the existing information collection effort 
by examining the environmental justice implications of neighborhood-
level decision making about the forest patches. Prior door-to-door data 
collection in south Atlanta neighborhoods revealed the presence of 
forest patches on vacant properties. However, there is little to no 
data on how residents perceive of these spaces or how residents might 
contribute to decision processes about the outcome of these spaces. 
This is an important question given the sites are providing ecological 
benefits such as stormwater mitigation.
    For the proposed data collection, survey questions were included on 
people's awareness of forest patches on vacant properties near their 
neighborhoods and on potential barriers residents might face in 
contributing to decision making processes about the patches. Many 
contextual factors constrain people's ability to engage in local-level 
environmental decision making, the procedural component of 
environmental justice. The data collected via this effort will provide 
important input on factors that might facilitate or constrain 
engagement and will inform the USDA Forest Service's efforts to address 
Executive Order 14008, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, 
and Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low Income Populations.
    Data collection will center on south Atlanta neighborhoods adjacent 
to vacant land with forest patches. These neighborhoods are 
overwhelmingly African American, with poverty rates ranging from 
roughly 30 percent to 64 percent. The neighborhoods are also near 
multiple transportation companies, the activities of which compromise 
air quality.
    The survey will be conducted at the household, using proportionate-
guided random sampling where the survey is left for the appropriate 
respondent to complete and is picked up later by a survey 
administrator. This methodology limits contact between the surveyor and 
the household but provides the in-person contact that is helpful for 
increasing response rates which are considerably lower in minority 
communities. Survey administrators will include USDA Forest Service 
social scientists, neighborhood residents trained in door-to-door data 
collection methods, and university college students. Researchers with 
USDA Forest Service Research & Development staff will analyze the data.
    If the information proposed herein is not collected, the 
opportunity to address environmental justice from a procedural 
perspective will be missed. The information collection also will assist 
the Agency in better understanding how urban green spaces in southern 
cities impact residents' quality of life. Comparatively fewer Forest 
Service led studies have examined this topic for these populations.
    Type of Respondents: City of Atlanta residents.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 600.
    Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 120 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

[[Page 51112]]

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 for 
Office of Management and Budget approval.

    Dated: September 9, 2021.
Alexander L. Friend,
Deputy Chief, Research & Development.
[FR Doc. 2021-19766 Filed 9-13-21; 8:45 am]
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