# Togiak National Wildlife Refuge; Information Collection To Be Submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval
**AGENCY:**
Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
**ACTION:**
Notice, information collection.
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR part 1320, which implement provisions of the Paperwork reduction Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-13), require that interested members of the public and affected agencies have an opportunity to comment on information collection and record keeping activities (see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)). We will submit a request to OMB to approve the collection of information for preserving the unwritten knowledge (oral history) of the long-term residents of the southwest Alaska region in the vicinity of the Togiak National Wildlife Refuge. We are requesting a 3-year term of approval of this new information collection activity. Pursuant to our request for OMB approval of this new information collection, we invite comments on (1) whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of our functions, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of our estimate of burden, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used, and (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
The proposed information collection form follows. A copy of the complete draft study proposal is available upon request at no cost. Direct requests to Patricia McClenahan, Office of Subsistence Management, 907/786-3888, extension 3875.
**QUESTIONNAIRE/CHECKLIST—SPECIES LIST**
**Togiak NWR TEK Study Species Check List.**
**Species Group or Species**
*Fish*
*Salmon*
King
Sockeye
Chum
Coho
Pink
*Char*
Dolly Varden
Arctic Char
Lake Trout
*Resident Freshwater*
Arctic Grayling
Rainbow Trout
Northern Pike
Blackfish
Burbot
Whitefish
Round
Humpback
Sculpin
Stickleback
*Marine*
Herring
Flat—fishes
Cod
Smelt
Capelin
*Marine Mammals*
Walrus
Seals
Harbor/Spotted
Ringed
Ribbon
Bearded
Sea Lions
*Whales*
Belukha
Gray
*Land Mammals*
Brown Bear
Black Bear
Porcupine
Tundra Hare
Snowshoe Hare
*Furbearers*
Beavers
Muskrats
Land Otters
Wolverine
Weasels
Minks
Marten
Lynx
Wolves
Coyote
Red Fox
Parka Squirrels
*Ungulates*
Moose
Caribou
Reindeer
Misc:
Sheep
Goats
Sheep
*Birds*
*Resident*
Ptarmigan
Grouse
*Waterfowl*
*Geese*
White fronted
Canada
Brant
Emperor
Snow
*Seabirds*
*Raptors*
*Others*
Cormorants
Magpies
Ravens
*Vegetation*
Berries
Salmon
Huckle
Blue
Black
Grasses
Firewood
*Vegetation types and changes*
spruce
cotton woods
alder
willow
**Togiak NWR TEK Interview Questionnaire (checklist)**
For each species a respondent has knowledge of that they are willing to share this will serve as a guideline a checklist for initial and follow up interviews.
1 a. Describe your annual seasonal activities. (From the life stages interview complete a general description of their seasonal subsistence activities—what species they rely on most and when they target them).
b. How has this changed over time?
2 a. Where does [species] occur ? (mapping exercise)
b. Special concentrations? (staging, nesting, feeding, haul out, spawning?)
c. Have you observed changes over time?
d. Are there indicators/predictors that involve this species? (Either this species as an indicator or other things that provide predictions about this species)
3 a. Where and when does harvest occur? (mapping/access/timing)
b. Has this changed over time?
4 a. What methods are used for harvest and processing this species?
b. Has this changed over time?
5 a. Have you observed any changes in this animals behavior or abundance over time?
b. Have you observed any changes in response to human harvest methods changes?
c. Do you have solutions/recommendations for changes to management strategies or regulations to improve or address increases/decreases observed in this species?
6 a. With whom do you share your subsistence resources?
b. How has this changed over time?
7 a. How did you pass along your subsistence knowledge & skills to your children/grandchildren or others in the community?
8 a. When did you first recall that non-residents came to this area to access these resources?
9 a. What environmental, physical or climatological changes have you observed?
10 a. What species occur now that didn't before?
b. What species used to occur (be plentiful), but are no longer?
**DATES:**
Comments must be submitted on or before November 26, 2002.
**ADDRESSES:**
Regional Anthropologist, Bristol Bay Region; Coastal Regions Division; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Subsistence Management; 3601 C Street, Suite 1030; Anchorage, AK 99503. Service Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 224-ARLSQ, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, DC 20240.
**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:**
Patricia McClenahan, Office of Subsistence Management, 907/786-3888 x. 3875, or Anissa Craghead, Service Information Collection Clearance Officer 703/358-2287.
*Title:* Oral History and Traditional Knowledge Gathering within Togiak National Wildlife Refuge.
Aaron Archibeque,
Refuge Manager, Togiak National Wildlife Refuge.