Natural Resources Conservation Service – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP/PEIS), Record of Decision, and Consent Decree, the Federal and State natural resource trustee agencies for the Mississippi Trustee Implementation Group (MS TIG) prepared a Final Restoration Plan II Environmental Assessment: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats and Oysters (RPII/EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). The RPII/EA describes the restoration project alternatives considered by the MS TIG that meet the Trustees' goals to restore and conserve habitat and replenish and protect living coastal and marine resources. The MS TIG evaluated these alternatives under criteria set forth in the OPA natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations and also evaluated the environmental consequences of the restoration alternatives in accordance with NEPA. The MS TIG selected four restoration projects in the RPII/EA for implementation in the Mississippi Restoration Area, which are consistent with the Trustees' selected programmatic alternative in the PDARP/PEIS. The purpose of this notice is to inform the public of the availability of the RPII/EA and FONSI.

In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP PEIS), Record of Decision, and Consent Decree, the Federal and State natural resource trustee agencies for the Mississippi Trustee Implementation Group (Mississippi TIG) have prepared a Draft Restoration Plan II Environmental Assessment: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats and Oysters (Draft RP II EA). MS TIG identified two Restoration TypesWetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats (WCNH) and Oystersthat it considered appropriate for the Draft RP II EA. The purpose of this notice is to inform the public of the availability of the Draft RP II EA and to request public comments on the document.

This notice of availability presents the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for the Little Otter Creek Watershed Plan (LOCWP) in Caldwell County, Missouri. This task has been to help plan and implement watershed projects. This notice announces the plan to proceed with the installation of the preferred alternative identified in the FSEIS. The preferred alternative, which includes the construction of a 344-acre multiple purpose reservoir, will avoid environmental impacts to the extent possible while minimizing and mitigating for impacts that are unavoidable.

NRCS announces the availability of the FSEIS for the Little Otter Creek Watershed Plan (LOCWP), Caldwell County, Missouri, involving the proposed construction of a multi-purpose reservoir. The purpose of this supplement is to address changes which have occurred since NRCS prepared the LOCWP and Environmental Impact Statement in 2003. The FSEIS updates the original EIS with more recent relevant environmental information and expands the alternatives analysis beyond those previously considered. The FSEIS evaluates reasonable and practicable alternatives and their expected environmental impacts under the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) provisions of the Council on Environmental Quality.

NRCS gives notice of the deauthorization of Federal funding for the Watkins Branch Watershed project in Buchanan County, Virginia.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is giving this notice that it intends to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in the National Handbook of Conservation Practices (NHCP), and NRCS is also giving the public an opportunity to provide comments on specified practice conservation standards in NHCP.

NRCS announces its intent to adopt the FEIS, titled ``Feral Swine Damage Management: A National Approach EIS'', prepared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), under the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) adoption provisions of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).

NRCS gives notice of the deauthorization of Federal funding for the South Branch Potomac River Subwatershed of the Potomac River Watershed project, Highland County, Virginia and Pendleton and Grant Counties, West Virginia, effective November 29, 2018.

NRCS gives notice of the intent to deauthorize Federal funding for the Watkins Branch Watershed project, Buchanan County, Virginia.

NRCS gives notice of the deauthorization of Federal funding for the Lick Creek Watershed project, Russell, Dickenson and Wise Counties, Virginia.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is requesting comments from all interested individuals and organizations on an extension and a revision of a currently approved information collection associated with Volunteer ProgramEarth Team. The Volunteer Interest and Placement Summary and the Timesheet forms are used by the respondents. The information NRCS collects on the forms is used to match the skills of individuals, who are 14 years of age or older and interested in volunteering for opportunities that will further NRCS's mission.

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a technical note on a group of recommended standard methods for soil health indicators selected by a collaborative multi-organizational effort, as described in the document. USDA/NRCS and partner efforts to assess soil health problems and impacts of management nationally, as part of conservation planning and implementation, will be facilitated if soil health indicators are measured using a standard set of methods. Soil health is defined as the capacity of the soil to function as a vital living ecosystem to sustain plants, animals, and humans. Six key soil physical and biological processes were identified that must function well in a healthy soil, and therefore would especially benefit from measurement methods standardization: (1) Organic matter dynamics and carbon sequestration, (2) soil structural stability, (3) general microbial activity, (4) C food source, (5) bioavailable N, and (6) microbial community diversity. The chosen methods met several criteria including indicator effectiveness with respect to management sensitivity and process interpretability, ease of use, cost effectiveness, measurement repeatability, and ability to be used for agricultural management decisions. The soil health indicator methods included are soil organic carbon (dry combustion), water-stable aggregation (Mikha and Rice, 2004), short-term mineralizable carbon (Schindelbeck et al., 2016), four enzymes: [beta]-glucosidase (Deng and Popova, 2011), N-acetyl-[beta]-D-glucosaminidase (Deng and Popova, 2011), acid or alkaline phosphatase (Acosta-Mart[iacute]nez and Tabatabai, 2011), and arylsulfatase (Klose et al., 2011), permanganate oxidizable carbon (Schindelbeck et al. 2016), autoclaved citrate extractable (ACE) protein (Schindelbeck et al. 2016), and phospholipid fatty acid analysis (Buyer and Sasser 2012). Standard operating procedures to be used in laboratories have been provided in the appendices.

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in the NHCP. These standards include Combustion System Improvement (Code 372), Dust Control on Unpaved Roads and Surfaces (Code 373), Integrated Pest Management (Code 595), Nutrient Management (Code 590), Pesticide Mitigation (Code 594), Subsurface Drain (Code 606), Waste Facility Closure (Code 360), and Wildlife Habitat Planting (Code 420). NRCS State Conservationists who choose to adopt these practices in their States will incorporate them into Section IV of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide. These practices may be used in conservation systems that treat highly erodible land (HEL) or on land determined to be a wetland. Section 343 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 requires NRCS to make available for public review and comment all proposed revisions to conservation practice standards used to carry out HEL and wetland provisions of the law.

Pursuant to the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act of 1954 and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Guidelines, NRCS gives notice of the intent to deauthorize Federal funding for the Lick Creek Watershed project, Russell, Dickenson and Wise Counties, Virginia.

Pursuant to the Flood Control Act and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Guidelines (7 CFR part 622), NRCS gives notice of the intent to deauthorize Federal funding for the South Branch Potomac River Subwatershed of the Potomac River Watershed project, Highland County, Virginia and Pendleton and Grant Counties, West Virginia.

In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon Federal and State natural resource trustee agencies for the Mississippi Trustee Implementation Group (MS TIG) have prepared a final Mississippi Trustee Implementation Group 2016-2017 Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment (RP/EA). The RP/EA describes the restoration project alternatives considered by the MS TIG to restore and conserve habitat, replenish and protect living coastal and marine resources, and restore water quality. The MS TIG evaluated these alternatives under criteria set forth in the OPA natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations, and also evaluated the environmental consequences of the restoration alternatives in accordance with NEPA. The Federal Trustees of the MS TIG have determined that implementation of the MS TIG 2016- 2017 RP/EA is not a major Federal Action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the context of NEPA and, therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement will not be prepared. The MS TIG has selected three restoration projects in the RP/EA for implementation in the Mississippi Restoration Area, which are consistent with the Trustees' programmatic alternatives in the Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PDARP/PEIS).

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue revisions to the State Offsite Methods (SOSM) for use in Iowa, North Dakota, Minnesota, and South Dakota. The SOSM is used in completing wetland determinations for USDA program eligibility purposes. The existing SOSM's have been in use since July 2015, NRCS is seeking comments only on the proposed revisions to these documents. The revisions are needed to clarify procedures and improve consistency in application. NRCS State Conservationists in each of these States will incorporate their revised SOSM into Section I of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide (FOTG). As identified in the National Food Security Act Manual these revised methods may be used for completion of wetland determinations. Section 343 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 requires NRCS to make available for public review and comment all proposed revisions to methods and procedures used to carry out the Highly Erodible Land and wetland compliance provisions of the 1985 Food Security Act (as amended).

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to implement the WEPP technology to replace the use of the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation, Version 2 (RUSLE2), where applicable.

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in NHCP. These standards include Brush Management (Code 314), Herbaceous Weed Treatment (Code 315), Lined Waterway or Outlet (Code 468), Prescribed Grazing (Code 528), and Restoration of Rare or Declining Natural Communities (Code 643). NRCS State Conservationists who choose to adopt these practices for use within their States will incorporate them into section IV of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide. These practices may be used in conservation systems that treat highly erodible land (HEL), or on land determined to be a wetland. Section 343 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 requires NRCS to make available for public review and comment all proposed revisions to conservation practice standards used to carry out HEL and wetland provisions of the law.

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in the National Handbook of Conservation Practices. These standards include Anionic Polyacrylamide (PAM) Application (Code 450), Compost Facility (Code 317), Constructed Wetland (Code 656), Critical Area Planting (Code 342), Drainage Water Management (Code 554), Feed Management (Code 592), Field Border (Code 386), Filter Strip (Code 393), Irrigation Land Leveling (Code 464), Irrigation System, Surface and Subsurface (Code 443), Residue and Tillage Management, No Till (Code 329), Residue and Tillage Management, Reduced Till (Code 345), and Stream Habitat Improvement (Code 395). NRCS State Conservationists who choose to adopt these practices for use within their States will incorporate them into section IV of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide. These practices may be used in conservation systems that treat highly erodible land (HEL) or on land determined to be a wetland. Section 343 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 requires NRCS to make available for public review and comment all proposed revisions to conservation practice standards used to carry out HEL and wetland provisions of the law.

NRCS is proposing to revise Section I of the Indiana Field Office Technical Guide to include ``Guidance for Indiana Wetland Determinations, Including the use of Offsite Methods, to Identify Wetlands, Wetland Types, and Their Size for the 1985 Food Security Act, as amended,'' which will replace the existing ``Wetland Mapping Conventions for Agricultural Land and Narrow Band and Small Pocket Inclusions of Non-Agricultural Land'' (commonly referred as State Wetland Mapping Conventions).

Notice is hereby given of the intention of NRCS to issue a series of revised conservation practice standards in the National Handbook of Conservation Practices. These standards include: Clearing and Snagging (Code 326), Diversion (Code 362), Fish Raceway or Tank (Code 398), Pond Sealing or LiningCompacted Soil Treatment (Code 521B), Pond Sealing or LiningConcrete (Code 521C), Sediment Basin (Code 350), Silvopasture (Code 381), Tree/Shrub Establishment (Code 612), Vegetated Subsurface Drain Outlet (Code 604), and Waste Storage Facility (Code 313). NRCS State Conservationists who choose to adopt these practices for use within their States will incorporate them into section IV of their respective electronic Field Office Technical Guide. These practices may be used in conservation systems that treat highly erodible land (HEL) or on land determined to be a wetland. Section 343 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 requires NRCS to make available for public review and comment all proposed revisions to conservation practice standards used to carry out HEL and wetland provisions of the law.

NRCS is proposing to revise Section I of the Illinois Field Office Technical Guide to include ``Guidance for Illinois Food Security Act Wetland Determinations Including Offsite Methods'' which will replace the existing ``Wetland Mapping Conventions NRCS Illinois'' (commonly referred as State Wetland Mapping Conventions).

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) issues its final rule implementing the equitable relief authority, and the procedures set forth in section 1613 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (the 2002 Act), relating to relief for participants for covered programs administered by NRCS. The relief applies to cases where the program participant took action to his or her detriment based on action or advice from an NRCS employee, and situations where the participant acted in good faith, but failed to fully comply with program requirements.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Department of the Army announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.