[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 27 (Wednesday, February 9, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6369-6370]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-2954]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OPP-30451B; FRL-6487-3]


Burkholderia cepacia Strain Ral-3; Withdrawal of an Application 
to Register a Pesticide Product Containing a New Active Ingredient

AGENCY:  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:  Notice.

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SUMMARY:  Agrium U.S., Inc., has withdrawn its application to register 
a pesticide product containing the active ingredient Burkholderia 
cepacia strain Ral-3 (EPA File Symbol 70724-R). The application is 
withdrawn without prejudice to future filing for registration of 
products containing Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Denise L. Greenway, c/o Product 
Manager 91, Biopesticides and Pollution Prevention Division (7511C), 
Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Ariel 
Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, 
telephone number (703) 308-8263, e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    Although this action only applies to the registrant in question, it 
is directed to the public in general. Since various individuals or 
entities may be interested, the Agency has not attempted to describe 
all the specific entities that may be interested in this action. If you 
have any questions regarding this action, please consult the person 
listed under ``FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.''

II. How Can I Get Additional Information, Including Copies of this 
Document and Other Related Documents?

    1. Electronically. You may obtain electronic copies of this 
document, and certain other related documents that might be available 
electronically, from the EPA Internet Home Page at http://www.epa.gov/. 
To access this document, on the Home Page select ``Laws and 
Regulations'' and then look up the entry for this document under the 
``Federal Register--Environmental Documents.'' You can also go directly 
to the Federal Register listings at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.
    2. In person. The Agency has established an official record for 
this action under docket control number OPP-30451B. The official record 
consists of the documents specifically referenced in this action and 
other information related to this action, including any information 
claimed as Confidential Business Information (CBI). This official 
record includes the documents that are physically located in the 
docket, as well as the documents that are referenced in those 
documents. The public version of the official record does not include 
any information claimed as CBI. The public version of the official 
record, which includes printed, paper versions of any electronic 
comments submitted during an applicable comment period, is available 
for inspection in the Public Information and Records Integrity Branch 
(PIRIB), Rm. 119, Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis Hwy., 
Arlington, VA, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The PIRIB telephone number is (703) 305-5805.

III. Background Information

    EPA issued a notice in the Federal Register on March 24, 1998 (63 
FR 14114) (FRL-5780-3), which announced the Agrium U.S., Inc. 
submission of an application to register a pesticide product (EPA File 
Symbol 70724-R) containing an active ingredient, the microbial 
pesticide Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3, an active ingredient not 
included in any previously registered pesticide product. Subsequently, 
EPA issued a correction notice in the Federal Register on April 15, 
1998 (63 FR 18410) (FRL-5783-3) for the microbial pesticide 
Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3.
    The application was the subject of a joint review with the Pest 
Management Regulatory Agency of Health Canada, where the application 
was also withdrawn from further consideration by the applicant.
    EPA received comments from the Allegheny University of the Health 
Sciences, the University of Edinburgh Medical School, Children's 
Hospital of Oklahoma, the University of British Columbia, and the 
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. EPA co-chaired and participated in a 
symposium entitled, ``Burkholderia cepacia-Friend or Foe?,'' at a joint 
meeting of the American Phytopathological Society (APS) and the 
Entomological Society of America (ESA). EPA held and participated in an 
inter-Agency meeting entitled, ``Risk Assessment for Intentional Use of 
Opportunistic Pathogens,'' with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), 
the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the Department of Health 
and Human Services (HHS), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the 
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and Health Canada. 
EPA also participated in several meetings of the International 
Burkholderia cepacia Working Group (IBCWG) and held and participated in 
a Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) 
Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) meeting entitled, ``Burkholderia 
cepacia: Risk Assessment of a Biopesticide with Affinities to a Human 
Opportunistic Pathogen,'' a record of which is

[[Page 6370]]

available at http://www.epa.gov/scipoly/sap/1999/index.htm#july.

IV. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    EPA is announcing that Agrium U.S., Inc., South Ulster St., Suite 
1400, Denver, CO 80237, has withdrawn its application to register a 
microbial pesticide containing Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3, as 
provided for in section 3(c)(7)(C) of the Federal Insecticide, 
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended by the Food Quality 
Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA). Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3 is an 
active ingredient not included in any previously registered pesticide 
product. Burkholderia cepacia strain Ral-3 had been proposed as a 
microbial pesticide for commercial indoor application to seed and/or 
seedlings of conifers and deciduous trees.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.

    Dated: January 21, 2000.
Janet L. Andersen,
Director, Biopesticides and Pollution Prevention Division, Office of 
Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. 00-2954 Filed 2-8-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-F