[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 167 (Wednesday, August 28, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68925-68927]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-19320]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

[OMB Control Number 1010-NEW; Docket ID: BOEM-2024-0007]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget; Cook Inlet Recreation and Tourism 
Survey

AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) proposes a new information 
collection request (ICR) to gather information regarding outdoor 
recreation and tourism in the Cook Inlet Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) 
Planning Area and adjacent coastal areas.

DATES: Comments must be received by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) desk officer no later than September 27, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Submit your written comments on this ICR to the OMB's desk 
officer for the Department of the Interior at www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. From the www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain landing page, 
find this information collection by selecting ``Currently under 
Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function. 
Please provide a copy of your comments by parcel delivery service or 
U.S. mail to the BOEM Information Collection Clearance Officer, Anna 
Atkinson, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 45600 Woodland Road, 
Sterling, Virginia 20166; or by email to [email protected]. Please 
reference OMB Control Number 1010-NEW in the subject line of your 
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Atkinson by email at 
[email protected], or by telephone at 703-787-1025. Individuals

[[Page 68926]]

in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have 
a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access 
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside of the United 
States should use the relay services offered within their country to 
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, BOEM provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on new, proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps BOEM assess the impact of the 
information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting 
burden. It also helps the public understand BOEM's information 
collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired 
format.
    Title of Collection: Cook Inlet Recreation and Tourism Survey.
    Abstract: Natural resource-based recreation in the marine and 
coastal environments of Cook Inlet, Alaska, offers numerous economic, 
cultural, environmental, health, educational, and quality-of-life 
benefits. Recreation and tourism play a vital role in supporting local 
economies, preserving cultural heritage, promoting environmental 
stewardship, and improving the well-being of both residents and 
visitors. The OCS Lands Act charges BOEM with managing the energy and 
mineral resources of the OCS, while protecting marine and coastal 
environments that support human lives and society. Additionally, to 
ensure the scientific integrity of its National Environmental Policy 
Act (NEPA) assessments, BOEM requires reliable data and information to 
evaluate the extent to which its activities adversely affect the human 
environment (40 CFR 1502.23). As defined in 40 CFR 1508.1, the effects 
on the human environment evaluated in NEPA assessments include social 
and economic impacts, as well as ecological, aesthetic, historic, 
cultural, and health effects.
    BOEM intends to conduct a research study of outdoor recreation and 
tourism in the Cook Inlet OCS Planning Area and adjacent coastal areas 
(i.e., the study area). BOEM seeks updated baseline information on the 
nature, distribution, and seasonality of outdoor recreation and tourism 
in the study area, and the relative preferences and values for these 
activities. BOEM would use this information to determine how 
stakeholders and the recreational and tourism economy may be affected 
by potential future oil, gas, renewable energy, and other energy 
exploration and development activities. This study would help BOEM 
identify any appropriate mitigation strategies to address potential 
adverse effects of its activities on recreation and tourism in the 
study area. Altogether, the study would enable BOEM to develop more 
rigorous and thorough environmental analyses during any NEPA processes 
related to future Cook Inlet OCS energy and mineral activities.
    Specifically, this information collection would involve primary 
data collection (following ICR approval by OMB) to elicit information 
on: (a) activities and attributes contributing to the value of 
recreational experiences; (b) expenditures related to recreational 
activities; and (c) how these things differ across the region and 
different user groups (e.g., residents and visitors). The primary 
research would provide meaningful insight regarding the influence of 
energy development on recreation and tourism (e.g., by comparing areas 
in the Upper Cook Inlet with existing energy infrastructure to other 
areas in Cook Inlet without any energy infrastructure). The study also 
would document user attitudes regarding how recreation and tourism may 
be affected by different energy development-related activities (e.g., 
noise, space use conflicts, aesthetic effects of infrastructure, and 
vessel traffic).
    The study's primary research design would include four components: 
focus groups, cognitive interviews, onsite intercept surveys, and 
written surveys. The focus groups and cognitive interviews would be 
used to develop and pretest a draft written survey, first in a group 
setting (focus groups) and then in a one-on-one interview setting 
(cognitive interviews). The onsite survey would include a small number 
of questions to determine eligibility for recruitment to the written 
survey. It will be pretested onsite while investigators are in the 
field for the focus groups. The final onsite and written surveys would 
be administered at approximately two dozen sites in the study area 
during the primary recreation season from May to October. Potential 
respondents would be approached as they arrive to a site and invited to 
fill out the survey.
    1. Focus Groups--To inform survey development, BOEM would conduct 
focus groups with recreationists in the study area. The recreationists 
would identify their preferred coastal- and marine-related recreation 
sites; why they choose their preferred sites; the differences they 
perceive between sites near existing energy infrastructure (in portions 
of the Upper Cook Inlet) to sites that are not near any energy 
infrastructure, and the recreational quality of those sites; what they 
like about their recreational experiences around Cook Inlet; what they 
do not like about the Cook Inlet sites they avoid; how offshore energy 
exploration and development activities may affect their recreation site 
choice and experience; and other related issues.
    2. Cognitive Interviews--The findings of the focus groups would be 
used to develop a draft written survey instrument. BOEM would then 
conduct 25 cognitive interviews to test and refine the survey. 
Specifically, the interviews would test if the survey is working as 
expected. Factors relevant to that determination include evaluating if 
questions are easily understood, whether respondents misunderstand the 
questions in any way, whether response categories are exhaustive and 
mutually exclusive, and other similar issues.
    3. Onsite Intercept Surveys--A short in-person survey to be 
conducted with recreationists as they arrive at a site. The questions 
will determine eligibility for recruitment to the written survey, 
including whether they are participating in recreation activities. The 
onsite interview will also include selected demographic questions for 
comparison with respondents to the written survey and evaluation of 
nonresponse. Surveys would be administered at a range of sites, 
including public lands, visitor centers, seaports, airports, and 
marinas. Because the surveys would be administered between May and 
September, a potential respondent may be intercepted on more than one 
occasion. If a respondent clarifies that they have already taken the 
survey, they would not be asked to take it again.
    4. Written Surveys--The written survey would cover topics such as 
recreational destinations, frequency of use in the past 12 months, 
recreation trip-related expenditures, preferences for recreation site 
attributes, attitudes about offshore energy projects and impacts of the 
projects on recreation, and respondent demographics.
    OMB Control Number: OMB Control Number 1010-NEW.
    Type of Review: New.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Participants in the focus groups and 
cognitive interviews would be members of the public who have engaged in 
coastal or marine recreation in the study area in the past year. 
Respondents to the onsite and written surveys would be members of the 
public engaged in coastal or marine recreational activities in the 
study area. Members of the public

[[Page 68927]]

would consist of a mixture of local, State, and out-of-State residents.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 2,095: 40 focus group 
participants, 25 cognitive interview participants, 30 pretest onsite 
surveys, 1,500 completed onsite surveys, and 500 completed written 
surveys. The focus group questions would be semi-structured and open-
ended. Onsite and written survey questions would be primarily discrete 
choice and closed-ended with minimal open-ended questions.
    Estimated Completion Time per Response: 90 minutes per focus group 
participant, 45 minutes per cognitive interview participant, 1 minute 
for the onsite survey, and 12 minutes per written survey participant. 
(BOEM anticipates that the survey would comprise approximately 30 
questions with each question taking about 20-30 seconds to complete on 
average.)
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 205 hours: 60 hours 
for focus groups, 18.75 hours for cognitive interviews, 30 minutes for 
the pretest onsite surveys, 25 hours for the onsite survey, and 100 
hours for the written survey.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Frequency of Collection: One time.
    Total Estimated Annual Non-hour Burden Cost: There is no non-hour 
cost burden associated with this collection.
    A Federal Register notice with a 60-day public comment period on 
this proposed ICR was published on February 9, 2024 (89 FR 9175). One 
comment was received on February 18, 2024. The commentor recommended 
prohibiting oil and gas leasing and commercial tourism. While the 
comment is recognized, it does not change the purpose of or need for 
the proposed study, nor does it affect the cost or hour burden.
    BOEM is again soliciting comments on this proposed ICR. BOEM is 
especially interested in public comment addressing the following 
issues: (1) is the collection necessary to the proper functions of 
BOEM; (2) what can BOEM do to ensure this information will be processed 
and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; 
(4) how might BOEM enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (5) how might BOEM minimize the burden 
of this collection on the respondents, including minimizing the burden 
through the use of information technology?
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record and will be available for public review on 
www.reginfo.gov. BOEM will include or summarize each comment in its ICR 
to OMB for approval of this information collection. You should be aware 
that your entire comment--including your address, phone number, email 
address, or other personally identifiable information included in your 
comment--may be made publicly available at any time.
    For BOEM to consider withholding from disclosure your personally 
identifiable information, you must identify, in a cover letter, any 
information contained in your comment that, if released, would 
constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of your personal privacy. You 
must also briefly describe any possible harmful consequences of the 
disclosure of information, such as embarrassment, injury, or other 
harm.
    Even if BOEM withholds your personally identifiable information in 
the context of this ICR, your comment is subject to the Freedom of 
Information Act (FOIA). Your information will only be withheld if a 
determination is made that one of the FOIA exemptions to disclosure 
applies. Such a determination will be made in accordance with the 
Department of the Interior's (DOI) FOIA implementing regulations (43 
CFR part 2) and applicable law.
    BOEM will make available for public inspection all comments in 
their entirety (except privileged or confidential information) 
submitted by organizations and businesses, or by individuals 
identifying themselves as representatives of organizations or 
businesses. BOEM protects privileged and confidential information in 
accordance with FOIA and DOI's implementing regulations.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number.
    The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Karen Thundiyil,
Chief, Office of Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
[FR Doc. 2024-19320 Filed 8-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4340-98-P