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Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request; ``Stakeholder Preferences Regarding Environmental Quality, Quality of Life, and Economic Development in Survey of Cape May County, New Jersey''

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

  

[Federal Register: April 6, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 67)]
[Notices]
[Page 18239-18241]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr06ap01-41]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6963-5]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; ``Stakeholder Preferences Regarding Environmental
Quality, Quality of Life, and Economic Development in Survey of Cape
May County, New Jersey''

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit the
following proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office
of Management and Budget (OMB):

[[Page 18240]]

Stakeholder Preferences Regarding Environmental Quality, Quality of
Life, and Economic Development in Survey of Cape May County, New
Jersey, EPA ICR No. 2019.01. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for
review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of
the proposed information collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before June 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES: The surveys as they will be received by respondents may be
obtained without charge by mailing or e-mailing a request to Dr. Ann
Fisher, Pennsylvania State University, AERS, 107 Armsby Building,
University Park, PA 16802, email: fisherann@psu.edu; phone: (814) 865-
3143. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, e-mail
if available, and delivery preference (diskette by mail, or e-mail
delivery).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Janet L. Gamble, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 8601D, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave
NW., Washington, DC 20460; e-mail: gamble.janet@epa.gov; phone: (202)
564-3387; FAX: (202) 565-0075.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Affected Entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are
individuals who agree to participate in the survey. Participation is
voluntary. Recruiting will be done by telephone using random-digit
dialing to select households and businesses in Cape May County, NJ in a
manner described by the abstract below.
    Title: Stakeholder Preferences Regarding Environmental Quality,
Quality of Life, and Economic Development in Survey of Cape May County,
New Jersey (EPA ICR No. 2019.01).
    Abstract: The Pennsylvania State University (PSU) in cooperation
with the Global Change Research Program (GCRP) in the Office of
Research and Development (ORD) of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is proposing to conduct a survey of individual residents
and business managers in Cape May County, New Jersey. The survey will
solicit Cape May County (NJ) residents' perceptions about their quality
of life, how they prioritize risks to their quality of life, and their
judgments about trade-offs among alternative actions that would reduce
vulnerability to these risks. The focus will be on risks related to
changes in land-use practices such as development of open land, and
risks related to the potential for storm damages that could accompany
sea-level rise or climate change. The survey approach also will solicit
business managers' perceptions of direct and indirect risks from
flooding.
    This data collection is motivated by the Mid-Atlantic Regional
Assessment of the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and
Change (MARA), that showed that many potential impacts from climate
change will exacerbate existing environmental stresses, particularly
those from economic development and sea level rise. Yet little is known
about how individuals and their communities are willing to make trade-
offs between protection of nearby ecosystems and local economic
development. This is particularly important in coastal communities
where a major component of many livelihoods stems from tourism based on
ecological features such as migratory bird habitat. Paradoxically,
development decisions to accommodate more tourists could decrease the
habitat for the ecosystems that attract tourists. This could be
compounded by failing to account for climate change and for the sea-
level rise that is occurring as Mid-Atlantic coastal areas subside;
sea-level rise and climate change could affect both ecosystem habitat
as well as developed areas. Decisions by individual citizens,
businesses, developers, local planners, and environmental protection
agencies could be improved by having information about the relative
importance of a range of quality-of-life characteristics, including
habitat and infrastructure protection, when compared with economic
development. Because Cape May County has many of these features, it is
an appropriate test case for identifying preferences about such trade-
offs.
    The data is being collected by Penn State University in
collaboration with EPA/ORD Global Change Research Program, under
Cooperative Agreement No. R-82840701-0. This survey is not associated
with any rule-making process within the Federal government. Instead,
Penn State will use this research to demonstrate the potential
usefulness of such an approach for localities that want more
information about tradeoffs related to development decisions. For Cape
May County, the data will be used to assess the relative importance of
quality-of-life characteristics and citizens' willingness to make
trade-offs among actions to improve the levels and resiliency of those
characteristics. The results will be useful most directly for (and are
expected to be used by) the residents of Cape May County. The
development, pretesting and revision, implementation, and analysis of
the data will demonstrate the usefulness of the questionnaire for
implementation by other communities facing similar issues.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15.
    The EPA would like to solicit comments to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses.
    Burden Statement: The (completely voluntary) survey will have two
phases. Phase I will be a 10-minute phone survey, with a component
tailored to each of two target groups. Identified through random-digit
dialing (RDD), permanent residents and those who visit for a month or
more each year (N = 1225) will be asked to rate quality-of-life
characteristics, make straight-forward judgments about future
development and storm threats, and respond to standard socio-
demographic questions. The other target group is a sample (N = 300) of
local businesses that will be asked about damages they might experience
if a flood occurred, as well as actions they have taken or plan to take
to reduce their vulnerability. Data from the business survey will
provide context for interpreting the citizen survey. Phase II will be a
(20-minute) mail follow-up to the phone survey, sent to residents who
express interest in providing judgments comparing combinations of
quality-of-life characteristics (N = 600). Its data will provide more
depth for the research analysis and for reporting back to Cape May
County. The total number of respondents is 2125. The only cost to
respondents will be their time, for a total of 454.17 hours. The burden
estimates are based on administration of

[[Page 18241]]

2125 questionnaires. The total respondent cost estimate is $9,610.24.
    Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose or provide
information to or for a Federal Agency. This includes the time needed
to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements;
train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information;
search data sources; complete and review the collection of information;
and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

    Dated: March 29, 2001.
Arthur F. Payne,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 01-8493 Filed 4-5-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-U

 
 

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