Department of Agriculture March 11, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Notice is hereby given that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, intends to grant to Innovative Foods, Inc. of South San Francisco, California, an exclusive license to U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 10/917,797, ``Novel Infrared Dry Blanching (IDB), Infrared Blanching, and Infrared Drying Technologies for Food Processing'', filed on August 13, 2004.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), for a new information collection for CFR Part 62Quality Systems Verification Program (QSVP). AMS established a voluntary standard for a naturally raised marketing claim that livestock producers may request to have verified by the Department of Agriculture (USDA). This standard will become effective once this information collection is approved by OMB. AMS verification of this claim would be accomplished through an audit of the production process in accordance with procedures that are contained in Part 62 of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations (7 CFR part 62). After approval, AMS will submit a request to merge this information collection into the currently approved OMB Number 0581-0124, 7 CFR Part 54 Meats, Prepared Meats and Meat Products (Grading, Certification & Standards) and 7 CFR Part 62 Quality Systems Verification Program (QSVP).

The USDA, Forest Service, Eldorado National Forest will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a proposal to treat approximately 6,200 acres of National Forest System land for fuels reduction and forest health objectives. The project area is situated on the Georgetown Ranger District approximately 15 air-miles northeast of Georgetown, CA in the vicinity of Nevada Point Ridge, Devils Peak and Bear Springs. The intent of this project is to reduce potential fire hazard within the project area, to provide for increased resilience when a wildfire occurs within the project area, to provide for improved forest health, and to increase the rate of development of old forest characteristics. The Proposed Action consists of commercial and precommercial tree thinning with follow-up tractor piling or mastication; mastication of select, existing plantations with a follow- up treatment of herbicides to reduce brush competition and fuel buildup; the planting of conifers in expanded canopy gaps with a follow-up treatment of herbicide; and prescribed burning. Silvicultural treatments for each stand were chosen for their ability to meet the stated purpose and need. The focus of each treatment is based on the desired quality of each treatment area after management rather than the quantity or quality of the products removed from each area. In fact, some treatments would not remove forest products. Approximately 15 miles of native surface road reconstruction and 1 mile of new road construction are proposed in order to facilitate the treatment activities. The land allocations within the treatment areas, as identified in the Sierra Nevada Forest Plan Amendment Final Supplemental EIS (SNFPA FSEIS), are general forest, spotted owl home range core areas, old-forest, and riparian conservation areas adjacent to perennial, seasonal, and ephemeral streams. The purpose of the project is: (1) To change existing forest surface, ladder and crown fuel profiles in order to reduce potential wildfire intensity and behavior to mitigate the consequences of large, potentially damaging wildfires on selected forested areas; (2) to improve stand vigor and resistance to disease and insect mortality; (3) maintain and/or establish a composition of tree species and size classes that are closer to the historic levels for the area, and correspondingly sustainable into the future; and (4) to treat hazard fuels in a cost-effective manner to maximize program effectiveness.