[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 217 (Thursday, November 8, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 56427-56428]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-28065]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 217 / Thursday, November 8, 2001 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 56427]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 300

[Docket No. 99-081-1]


Hot Water Treatment for Limes

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: We are amending the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment 
Manual, which is incorporated by reference into the Code of Federal 
Regulations, to allow limes that are found to be infested with 
mealybugs (Pseudococcidae) and other surface pests to be treated with a 
hot water treatment. This action will provide an additional option for 
treating imported limes for mealybugs and other surface pests at the 
port of arrival.

DATES: This rule will be effective on January 7, 2002 unless we receive 
written adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit adverse 
comments on or before December 10, 2001. The incorporation by reference 
provided for by this rule is approved by the Director of the Federal 
Register as of January 7, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Please send four copies (an original and three copies) of 
your comments or notice of intent to submit adverse comments to: Docket 
No. 99-081-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 
3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.
Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. 99-081-1.
    You may read any comments that we receive on this docket in our 
reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related 
information, including the names of organizations and individuals who 
have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Donna L. West, Import Specialist, 
Phytosanitary Issues Management, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 140, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-6799.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    To prevent the spread of plant pests into the United States, the 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) restricts the 
importation of many articles, including fruits. As a condition of 
importation, all fruits are subject to inspection at the port of 
arrival and, if necessary, treated for plant pests, in accordance with 
our regulations in 7 CFR chapter III. The Plant Protection and 
Quarantine (PPQ) Treatment Manual contains approved treatment schedules 
and is incorporated by reference into the regulations at 7 CFR 300.1.
    The PPQ Treatment Manual currently provides that limes that are 
found to be infested with mealybugs (Pseudococcidae) or other surface 
pests upon arrival in the United States must be treated with methyl 
bromide to destroy the mealybugs and other surface pests. In keeping 
with our commitment to working toward the development of commodity 
treatment alternatives to methyl bromide, we have determined that the 
following hot water treatment can be used as an effective treatment 
method for limes infested with mealybugs and other surface pests:
     The limes must be treated under the supervision of an 
APHIS inspector;
     The limes must be treated in a certified hot water 
immersion treatment tank and must be submerged at least 4 inches below 
the water's surface;
     The water must circulate continually and be kept at 120.2 
deg.F or above for 20 minutes;
     The treatment time begins when the water temperature 
reaches at least 120.2  deg.F in all locations of the tank; and
     Cooling and waxing the limes are optional and are the sole 
responsibility of the processor.
    Research conducted by the Department's Agricultural Research 
Service has shown that hot water treatment will destroy all mealybugs 
and other surface pests. Therefore, we are adding the hot water 
treatment described above to the PPQ Treatment Manual and are updating 
the PPQ Treatment Manual's incorporation by reference at 7 CFR 300.1 to 
reflect the date of this treatment's inclusion in the manual.

Dates

    We are publishing this rule without a prior proposal because we 
view this action as noncontroversial and anticipate no adverse public 
comment. This rule will be effective, as published in this document, 60 
days after the date of publication in the Federal Register unless we 
receive written adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit 
adverse comments within 30 days of publication of this rule in the 
Federal Register.
    Adverse comments are comments that suggest the rule should not be 
adopted or that suggest the rule should be changed.
    If we receive written adverse comments or written notice of intent 
to submit adverse comments, we will publish a notice in the Federal 
Register withdrawing this rule before the effective date. We will then 
publish a proposed rule for public comment.
    As discussed above, if we receive no written adverse comments or 
written notice of intent to submit adverse comments within 30 days of 
publication of this direct final rule, this direct final rule will 
become effective 60 days following its publication. We will publish a 
notice in the Federal Register, before the effective date of this 
direct final rule, confirming that it is effective on the date 
indicated in this document.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this 
action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review 
process required by Executive Order 12866.

[[Page 56428]]

    We are amending the PPQ Treatment Manual, which is incorporated by 
reference at 7 CFR 300.1, to allow imported limes that are found to be 
infested with mealybugs (Pseudococcidae) and other surface pests to be 
treated with a hot water treatment. This action will provide an 
alternative to treating infested limes with methyl bromide.
    Methyl bromide may still be used as a treatment method. It costs 
about $18.40 to fumigate a ton of limes with methyl bromide. Hot water 
treatment will cost about $9.10 per ton, taking into account labor and 
fuel costs. Hot water treatment will also take less time than methyl 
bromide fumigation. A hot water treatment tank fitted with 4 bins has a 
capacity to treat about 8 tons per hour. Depending on the amount of 
limes to be treated and the capacity of the treatment facility, it 
typically takes approximately 2 hours to fumigate limes with methyl 
bromide.
    This rule does not require the use of hot water treatment for 
infested limes; rather, it establishes hot water treatment as an 
alternative to methyl bromide fumigation. The hot water treatment 
provided for by this rule may lower treatment costs for lime importers 
who choose it over methyl bromide fumigation, but we do not expect that 
its availability will have any substantial economic effects on any 
entities, large or small.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12372

    This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372, 
which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local 
officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12988

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws and 
regulations that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no 
retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings 
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule contains no new information collection or recordkeeping 
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 300

    Incorporation by reference, Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine.

    Accordingly, 7 CFR part 300 is amended as follows:

PART 300--INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

    1. The authority citation for part 300 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701-7772; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.


    2. In Sec. 300.1, paragraph (a), the introductory text is revised 
to read as follows:


Sec. 300.1  Materials incorporated by reference.

    (a) Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual. In accordance 
with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51, the Director of the Office of 
the Federal Register has approved, for incorporation by reference in 7 
CFR chapter III, the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual, 
which was reprinted November 30, 1992, and all revisions through May 
2000; and Treatments T101-n-2, T102-b, and T102-e, and Table 5-2-5, 
revised July 2001.
* * * * *

    Done in Washington, DC, this 2nd day of November 2001.
W. Ron DeHaven,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 01-28065 Filed 11-7-01; 8:45 am]
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