Department of Agriculture April 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

It has been determined by the NRCS State Conservationist for Virginia that changes must be made in the NRCS State Technical Guide specifically in the following practice standards: 390, Riparian Herbaceous Cover, 394, Firebreak, 395, Stream Habitat Improvement and Management, 422, Hedgerow Planting, 643, Restoration and Management of Rare or Declining Habitats, and 647, Early Successional Habitat Development/ Management. These practices will be used to plan and install conservation practices.

The Juneau Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Juneau, AK. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) (the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with the title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose is to hold the first meeting of the newly formed committee.

This recommended decision proposes the issuance of a marketing agreement (agreement) under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 to cover the handling of fresh leafy green vegetables in the United States. Leafy green vegetables include lettuce, spinach, cabbage, and similar items. The proposed agreement would authorize the development and implementation of production and handling regulations (audit metrics) to reflect United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Good Handling Practices (GHPs). The program would be voluntary, and cover both United States and imported leafy green vegetables. Signatory handlers would agree to only handle leafy green vegetables that meet the requirements of the program. The program would be financed primarily by assessments collected from signatory first handlers. A Board, whose members would be appointed by the Secretary, would administer the proposed agreement with USDA oversight. This rule also announces USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval by the Office of Management and Budget for new information collection requirements to implement this program.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the intention of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) to request a reinstatement, with changes, to a previously approved information collection, the Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) Survey. Revision to burden hours will be needed due to changes in the size of the target, sampling design, and/ or questionnaire length.

As part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the process to seek feedback from the public on service delivery, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has submitted a Generic Information Collection Request (Generic ICR): ``Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery'' to OMB for approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced on March 4, 2011 a forthcoming meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) (76 FR 12013). The March 4, 2011 notice provided for five-minute public comment slots. Due to the overwhelming number of people who have signed up to present comments, AMS is informing the public that each public comment slot will be three minutes.

We are amending the regulations governing the interstate movement of regulated articles from areas quarantined for citrus canker, citrus greening, and/or Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) to allow the movement of regulated nursery stock under a certificate to any area within the United States. In order to be eligible to move regulated nursery stock, a nursery must enter into a compliance agreement with APHIS that specifies the conditions under which the nursery stock must be grown, maintained, and shipped. We are also amending the regulations that allow the movement of regulated nursery stock from an area quarantined for ACP, but not for citrus greening, to amend the existing regulatory requirements for the issuance of limited permits for the interstate movement of the nursery stock. We are making these changes on an immediate basis in order to provide nursery stock producers in areas quarantined for citrus canker, citrus greening, or ACP with the ability to ship regulated nursery stock to markets within the United States that would otherwise be unavailable to them due to the prohibitions and restrictions contained in the regulations while continuing to provide adequate safeguards to prevent the spread of the three pests into currently unaffected areas of the United States.

The Huron Manistee Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Mio, Michigan. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) (the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with the title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose of the meeting is to conduct committee business and to review proposed projects.

The USDA, Forest Service, will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on a proposed action comprising a number of infrastructural improvements at Mt. Bachelor ski resort, 22 miles southwest of Bend, Oregon. The resort lies entirely on National Forest System land and has operated under a ski area special use permit (SUP) issued by the Deschutes National Forest (DNF) since 1958. The permit area is 8,122 acres. The projects include on-mountain improvements such as development of a new chairlift and associated trails, shortening and/or replacement of three existing lifts, expanding snowmaking coverage, construction of a lift-served, downhill mountain bike park, and adding to the Nordic trail system. Improvements to base area facilities are also proposed, including expansion of two existing lodges, construction of a new lodge, construction of a race training center, removal and/or relocation of inappropriately sited and outdated facilities, expansion of parking lots, and installation of associated infrastructure. The EIS will address the Proposed Action and the required No-Action Alternative, as well as any other alternatives identified through public scoping or internal, interdisciplinary review. The EIS process will include a number of opportunities for involvement and input from the public as well as interested organizations and agencies. Public Scoping. This notice initiates the EIS process and provides notice of the first opportunity for public involvement, the scoping period. Comments regarding the scope of the EIS (i.e., the actions, alternatives, and impacts it addresses) are invited. Comments should be as specific as possible. More information on the Proposed Action and instructions for submitting scoping comments are provided below. Comments received in response to this notice, including names and addresses of those who comment, will be considered part of the public record for this project and will be available for public inspection. This is also an opportunity to participate in the National Historic Preservation Act, Section 106 process.

The Lake Tahoe Basin Federal Advisory Committee will hold a meeting on May 12, 2011 at the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 128 Market Street, Stateline, NV 89440. This Committee, established by the Secretary of Agriculture on December 15, 1998 (64 FR 2876), is chartered to provide advice to the Secretary on implementing the terms of the Federal Interagency Partnership on the Lake Tahoe Region and other matters raised by the Secretary.

The Kern and Tulare Counties Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will meet in Porterville and Bakersfield California. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) and in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purposes of the meetings are to hear presentations regarding proposed projects and vote on projects to recommend to the Forest Superisor for funding under Title II of the Act.

The Colville Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Colville Washington. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) (the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with the title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose of the meeting is vote on fiscal year 2011 projects.

The Shasta Unit of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest is proposing a hazardous fuels treatment project to reduce the risk of life, property and resource values from a high severity wildland fire event and improve fire suppression abilities and firefighter safety by modifying predicted fire behavior along Interstate Highway 5 (I-5) corridor north of the Pit River Bridge; south of the community of Pollock; east of Backbone Ridge peninsula; and west of the McCloud River Arm of Shasta Lake (approximately 15 miles north of Redding, Califronia). The project is located in Shasta County, California. The project area covers approximately 33,700 acres, 15,600 acres are within the wildland urban interface (WUI), 11,900 acres of the WUI are on National Forest System lands. Approximately 20,025 acres of the project area is proposed for treatment. Treatment methods include prescribe fire (i.e., broadcast, underburn, pile burn), mastication, thin and brush cut, prune, chip and pile.

The Nicolet Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Crandon, WI. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110-343) (the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with the title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose of the meeting is to review and approve submitted project proposals.

The 2008 Farm Bill amended the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to direct that the Secretary of Agriculture encourage institutions operating Child Nutrition Programs to purchase unprocessed locally grown and locally raised agricultural products. Effective October 1, 2008, institutions receiving funds through the Child Nutrition Programs may apply an optional geographic preference in the procurement of unprocessed locally grown or locally raised agricultural products. This provision applies to institutions in all of the Child Nutrition Programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, Special Milk Program for Children, Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program, as well as to purchases made for these programs by the Department of Defense Fresh Program. The provision also applies to State agencies making purchases on behalf of any of the aforementioned Child Nutrition Programs. The purpose of this rule is to finalize the geographic preference option in Child Nutrition Programs.

The Custer County Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Custer, South Dakota. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110- 343) and in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the meeting is review of project proposals to be implemented in 2012.

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) will hold two informational Webinars for the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) associated with the recently published REAP interim rule and Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA). Participation will be limited for each Webinar to the first two hundred registrants.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposes to amend its regulations to maintain consistency with standard industry contracts and to make minor revisions to streamline processing applications. These revisions are needed to conform with market and industry changes by updating, clarifying, and modifying the regulatory requirements for community facility construction and development. The amendments to the regulation will streamline current processes and provide for faster reviews of alternate construction contract methods (such as Design/ Build and Construction Management) by the Agency's National Office. This rule can also apply to applications under the Rural Business- Cooperative Service Programs.

This rule establishes procedures for conducting a referendum to determine whether issuance of a proposed Softwood Lumber Research, Promotion, Consumer Education and Industry Information Order (Order) is favored by domestic manufacturers and importers of softwood lumber. Softwood lumber is used in products like flooring, siding and framing. The procedures will also be used for any subsequent referendum under the Order. The proposed Order is being published separately in this issue of the Federal Register.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's intention to request an extension of approval of an information collection associated with regulations for the importation of poultry meat and other poultry products from Sinaloa and Sonora, Mexico.

The Superior National Forest will prepare an environmental impact statement for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) Non-native Invasive Plant (NNIP) Management Project. In order to maintain and improve aquatic and terrestrial wildlife habitat, to maintain healthy, resilient native plant communities, and to maintain the character and ecological integrity of the BWCAW, the Superior National Forest proposes to use an integrated pest management approach to treat NNIP, beginning with treatments on a total of approximately 13 acres of invasive plants at sites scattered across the wilderness and possibly expanding up to 20 acres over the next 10 years. The proposed activities would eradicate or control existing NNIP populations and respond rapidly to new infestations in order to prevent the further spread of NNIP.

The Priest Lake Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests will prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Lakeview-Reeder Fuel Reduction Project. The Notice of Availability of the draft EIS for the Lakeview-Reeder Fuels Reduction Project was published in the Federal Register (74 FR 5652) on January 30, 2009 and the notice of the final EIS (74 FR 28045) was published on June 12, 2009. Following the release of the final EIS, two pre-decisional objections were lodged against the project under 36 CFR part 218. Under administrative review, the project was found to be in compliance with existing laws, regulations and policy. Two separate records of decision were issued. The Roads Record of Decision (ROD) was signed on December 3, 2009. This authorized selected roadwork activities analyzed in Alternative 2 that needed to be accomplished before fuels reduction activities could be implemented. The Hazardous Fuels Reduction ROD was signed on May 10, 2010 and authorized the activities analyzed in Alternative 2 that were deferred in the Roads ROD. A complaint for injunctive and declaratory relief against the Fuels Reduction ROD was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho on October 6, 2010. On December 3, 2010, the Fuels Reduction ROD was withdrawn to address issues raised by the decision in Native Ecosystems Council v. Tidwell, 599 F.3d 926 (9th Cir. 2010). A supplemental EIS will be prepared to address management indicator species, recently designated critical habitat for bull trout, and newly designated Sensitive species. Treatment acres, harvest prescriptions and mitigation for grizzly bears are slightly changed from that presented in the proposed action of the final EIS due to ongoing collaborative efforts.

The Gogebic Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Marenisco, Michigan. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (Pub. L. 110- 343)(the Act) and operates in compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the committee is to improve collaborative relationships and to provide advice and recommendations to the Forest Service concerning projects and funding consistent with title II of the Act. The meeting is open to the public. The purpose of the meeting is to review and make recommendations on Title II Projects submitted by the public.