Department of Agriculture July 2, 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The USDA Forest Service, Lincoln National Forest, is extending the public comment period for a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) that discloses the potential impacts of a proposed action to authorize, under a new special use permit, the operation of four municipal supply water wells located on National Forest System (NFS) land in the North Fork Eagle Creek drainage. The new permit would be authorized for up to 20 years, with stipulations for frequent review and verification of the permit terms and conditions. These could occur as often as every year but would occur at least every 5 to 10 years. The new authorization would add terms and conditions to the permit reflecting current adaptive management strategies which both respond to the purpose and need for action, and mitigate potential adverse impacts to surface water and groundwater resources from well operations. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a notice of availability (NOA) of the DEIS in the Federal Register on May 25, 2012 [77-31355; ER-FRL-9003-2]. The NOA provided for a public comment period ending on July 9, 2012.

This rule would increase the assessment rate established for the California Desert Grape Administrative Committee (Committee) for the 2012 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.0125 to $0.0150 per 18- pound lug of grapes handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order, which regulates the handling of grapes grown in a designated area of southeastern California. Assessments upon grape handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins January 1 and ends December 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended or terminated.