Notice2021-19766
Information Collection: Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, GA
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 14, 2021
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentForest Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the USDA Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and organizations on the extension with revisions of a currently approved information collection, Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, Georgia.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51111-51112]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19766]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Information Collection: Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, GA
AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
USDA Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals
and organizations on the extension with revisions of a currently
approved information collection, Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta,
Georgia.
DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before November 15,
2021 to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date
will be considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Commenters are encouraged to submit comments by email, if
possible. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6b080a18180a050f190a45010403051804052b1e180f0a450c041d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1477756767757a7066753a7e7b7c7a677b7a54616770753a737b62">[email protected]</span></a>.
<bullet> Mail: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, Forestry Sciences Lab,
320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602.
<bullet> Hand Delivery/Courier: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, Forestry
Sciences Lab, 320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602.
<bullet> Facsimile: (706) 559-4266.
The public may inspect comments received at Forestry Sciences Lab,
320 Green Street, Athens, GA 30602, during normal business hours.
Visitors are encouraged to call ahead to (706) 559-4270 to facilitate
entry to the building.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cassandra Johnson Gaither, USDA Forest
Service, Southern Research Station, by phone at (706) 559-4270 or email
at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7013110303111e1402115e1a1f181e031f1e30050314115e171f06"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a6c5c7d5d5c7c8c2d4c788ccc9cec8d5c9c8e6d3d5c2c788c1c9d0">[email protected]</span></a>. Individuals who use telecommunication
devices for the hearing-impaired (TDD) may call the Federal Relay
Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 twenty-four hours a day, every day of
the year, including holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Urban Forest Engagement in Atlanta, GA.
OMB Number: 0596-0237.
Expiration Date of Approval: February 28, 2022.
Type of Request: Extension with revisions of a currently approved
information collection.
Abstract: This information collection will continue to gather data
on City of Atlanta residents' interest in and engagement with the urban
forest in the city. This information collection focuses more narrowly
on urban forest patches, a collection or stand of trees, in public
spaces. Engagement is defined as residents' interest in and awareness
of urban forest patches and resident participation in decisions about
how the patches should be maintained or repurposed. The information
collection also gathers data on social factors such as neighborhood
transiency and perception of neighborhood conditions, conceptualized as
collective efficacy and social cohesion. The neighborhood conditions
data provides information on the broader context from which people make
decisions about engaging with urban forest patches. If neighborhood
transiency (i.e., frequent involuntary moving of people in and out of
neighborhoods) is problematic in communities or people lack basic needs
such as access to healthy foods or safe neighborhoods, it is unlikely
that they would demonstrate a high degree of engagement with the city's
urban forest.
This collection extends the existing information collection effort
by examining the environmental justice implications of neighborhood-
level decision making about the forest patches. Prior door-to-door data
collection in south Atlanta neighborhoods revealed the presence of
forest patches on vacant properties. However, there is little to no
data on how residents perceive of these spaces or how residents might
contribute to decision processes about the outcome of these spaces.
This is an important question given the sites are providing ecological
benefits such as stormwater mitigation.
For the proposed data collection, survey questions were included on
people's awareness of forest patches on vacant properties near their
neighborhoods and on potential barriers residents might face in
contributing to decision making processes about the patches. Many
contextual factors constrain people's ability to engage in local-level
environmental decision making, the procedural component of
environmental justice. The data collected via this effort will provide
important input on factors that might facilitate or constrain
engagement and will inform the USDA Forest Service's efforts to address
Executive Order 14008, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,
and Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low Income Populations.
Data collection will center on south Atlanta neighborhoods adjacent
to vacant land with forest patches. These neighborhoods are
overwhelmingly African American, with poverty rates ranging from
roughly 30 percent to 64 percent. The neighborhoods are also near
multiple transportation companies, the activities of which compromise
air quality.
The survey will be conducted at the household, using proportionate-
guided random sampling where the survey is left for the appropriate
respondent to complete and is picked up later by a survey
administrator. This methodology limits contact between the surveyor and
the household but provides the in-person contact that is helpful for
increasing response rates which are considerably lower in minority
communities. Survey administrators will include USDA Forest Service
social scientists, neighborhood residents trained in door-to-door data
collection methods, and university college students. Researchers with
USDA Forest Service Research & Development staff will analyze the data.
If the information proposed herein is not collected, the
opportunity to address environmental justice from a procedural
perspective will be missed. The information collection also will assist
the Agency in better understanding how urban green spaces in southern
cities impact residents' quality of life. Comparatively fewer Forest
Service led studies have examined this topic for these populations.
Type of Respondents: City of Atlanta residents.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 600.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 120 hours.
Comment Is Invited: Comment is invited on: (1) Whether this
collection of information is necessary for the stated purposes and the
proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether
the information will have practical or scientific utility; (2) the
accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the collection of
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions
used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information
[[Page 51112]]
on respondents, including the use of automated, electronic, mechanical,
or other technological collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
All comments received in response to this notice, including names
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record.
Comments will be summarized and included in the submission request for
Office of Management and Budget approval.
Dated: September 9, 2021.
Alexander L. Friend,
Deputy Chief, Research & Development.
[FR Doc. 2021-19766 Filed 9-13-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3411-15-P
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