[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 115 (Friday, June 14, 2002)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40874-40876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-15074]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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 

  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 115 / Friday, June 14, 2002 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 40874]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 319

[Docket No. 01-132-1]


Gypsy Moth Host Material From Canada; Removal of Infested Areas 
in British Columbia, Canada

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend the regulations concerning gypsy 
moth host material from Canada by removing the areas in British 
Columbia from the list of gypsy moth infested areas. Surveys have shown 
that those areas in British Columbia have been free of gypsy moth for 
the past 2 years. This proposed action would remove restrictions on the 
importation of regulated articles from British Columbia that no longer 
appear necessary.

DATES: We will consider all comments we receive that are postmarked, 
delivered, or e-mailed by August 13, 2002.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by postal mail/commercial delivery 
or by e-mail. If you use postal mail/commercial delivery, please send 
four copies of your comment (an original and three copies) to: Docket 
No. 01-132-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 
3C71, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state 
that your comment refers to Docket No. 01-132-1. If you use e-mail, 
address your comment to [email protected]. Your comment must 
be contained in the body of your message; do not send attached files. 
Please include your name and address in your message and ``Docket No. 
01-132-1'' on the subject line.
    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: Mr. Frederick A. Thomas, Export 
Operations Officer, Phytosanitary Issues Management, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 
River Road Unit 140, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-8367.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar (Linnaeus), is a destructive pest 
of forest and shade trees. The regulations in ``Subpart--Gypsy Moth 
Host Material from Canada'' (7 CFR 319.77-1 through 319.77-5, referred 
to below as the regulations) restrict the importation of certain gypsy 
moth host material (regulated articles) from Canada to prevent the 
spread of gypsy moth from Canada into noninfested areas of the United 
States. The regulations in Sec. 319.77-2 identify the following as 
regulated articles: Trees without roots (e.g., Christmas trees), unless 
greenhouse-grown throughout the year; trees with roots, unless 
greenhouse-grown throughout the year; shrubs with roots and persistent 
woody stems, unless greenhouse-grown throughout the year; logs with 
bark attached; pulpwood with bark attached; outdoor household articles; 
and mobile homes and their associated equipment. Regulated articles 
must meet specific certification or destination requirements if they 
are intended to be moved into or through areas of the United States 
that are not infested with gypsy moth. Section 319.77-3 lists those 
areas of Canada known to be infested with gypsy moth. The descriptions 
of those infested areas, which are in British Columbia, New Brunswick, 
Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec, were provided by the Canadian Food 
Inspection Agency (CFIA). Section 319.77-4 contains the conditions for 
the importation into the United States of regulated articles from 
Canada.
    It has been our policy, agreed upon by CFIA, that an area must be 
free from gypsy moth for a period of 2 consecutive years before it will 
be removed from the list of gypsy moth infested areas. This is 
consistent with our practice under the provisions of our domestic 
quarantine regulations on gypsy moth in 7 CFR 301.45 through 301.45-12. 
Those areas in British Columbia that have been listed in the 
regulations as gypsy moth infested areas have been surveyed and found 
free of gypsy moth for the past 2 years, and have thus met our standard 
for removal from the list of gypsy moth infested areas.
    Therefore, we are proposing to amend the regulations by removing 
those areas in British Columbia from the list of gypsy moth infested 
areas in Canada. This proposed action would remove restrictions on the 
importation of regulated articles from British Columbia that no longer 
appear necessary.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. 
For this action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its 
review under Executive Order 12866.
    We are proposing to amend the regulations concerning gypsy moth 
host material from Canada by removing areas in British Columbia from 
the list of gypsy moth infested areas. Surveys have shown that those 
areas in British Columbia have been free of gypsy moth for the past 2 
years. This proposed action would relieve the specific certification 
and destination requirements of the regulations for certain gypsy moth 
host material imported into the United States from British Columbia.
    The articles that would be affected by this proposed rule are trees 
without roots (e.g., Christmas trees), unless greenhouse-grown 
throughout the year; trees with roots, unless greenhouse-grown 
throughout the year; shrubs with roots and persistent woody stems, 
unless greenhouse-grown throughout the year; logs with bark attached; 
pulpwood with bark attached; outdoor household articles; and mobile 
homes and their associated equipment. In 2000, the United States 
imported nearly $282 million in live plants and trees, about $64 
million in Christmas trees and

[[Page 40875]]

foliage, and more than $253 million in wood in the rough (i.e., logs 
with bark and pulpwood). Table 1 shows the total values of these 
imported products in 2000 and the percentage coming from Canada. Canada 
ranks first among the sources of U.S. imports of these products.

  Table 1.--U.S. Imports of Live Trees, Plants, and Rough Wood in 2000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Total value   Percentage
                Commodity group                  of imports      from
                                                ($ million)     Canada
------------------------------------------------------------------------
0602..........................................       $281.9           72
060491........................................         64.2           71
44010.........................................          4.0           85
4403..........................................        249.4           92
------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Note: The numbers identifying the commodities denote the 
harmonized system for classifying commodities in trade. These digits 
denote the general classes of live trees, plants, and rough wood 
traded. The first group, 0602, includes live roses, live fruit or 
nut trees, rhododendrons and azaleas, live orchid plants, 
chrysanthemums with soil attached, poinsettias with soil attached, 
herbaceous perennials, and trees and shrubs with soil attached. The 
second category, 060491, includes fir, northern Douglas, and other 
evergreen Christmas trees (also included in this category is 
foliage). The third group, 44010, includes fuel wood in logs, 
billets, and twigs. The fourth group, 4403, is wood in the rough.
    Source: World Trade Atlas, Global Trade Information Services: 
Calendar Year 2000.

    Canada is the major source of all U.S. imports of the regulated 
articles covered by the regulations, and British Columbia supplies a 
large portion of those Canadian exports. Table 2 shows U.S. imports of 
regulated articles from British Columbia during period 1996-2000.

          Table 2.--U.S. Imports of Live Trees, Plants, and Rough Wood From British Columbia, 1996-2000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   1996  ($     1997  ($     1998  ($     1999  ($     2000  ($
                Commodity group                    million)     million)     million)     million)     million)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0602...........................................        $14.2        $18.3        $23.2        $31.9        $42.4
060491.........................................          3.1          2.8          2.5          2.7          2.1
440110.........................................          1.1          1.2          1.4          1.5          1.7
4403...........................................         45.4         43.0         60.9        110.8       155.2
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Statistics Canada.

    With the exception of outdoor household articles and mobile homes 
and their associated equipment, regulated articles originating in a 
Canadian infested area that are to be moved into or through U.S. 
noninfested areas must be accompanied by an officially endorsed 
Canadian phytosanitary certificate that includes an additional 
declaration confirming that the regulated articles have been inspected 
and found free of gypsy moth or that the regulated articles have been 
treated for gypsy moth in accordance with the Plant Protection and 
Quarantine Treatment Manual. Logs or pulpwood originating in a Canadian 
infested area may also be moved into or through U.S. noninfested areas 
if they are moved to a specified U.S. processing plant or mill under 
compliance agreement with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service for specified handling or processing that will mitigate the 
risk of gypsy moth. Outdoor household articles and mobile homes and 
their associated equipment that are being moved from a Canadian 
infested area into or through U.S. noninfested areas may be imported 
into the United States only if they are accompanied by a statement, 
signed by their owner, stating that they have been inspected and found 
free of gypsy moth.
    Under the regulations, logs or pulpwood with bark attached, trees, 
and shrubs originating in a Canadian noninfested area that are to be 
moved into or through a U.S. noninfested area must be accompanied by a 
certification of origin stating that they were produced in an area of 
Canada where gypsy moth is not known to occur. (As defined in 
Sec. 319.77-1, a certification of origin is a signed, accurate 
statement certifying the area in which a regulated article was produced 
or grown that may be provided directly on the shipping documents 
accompanying shipments of commercial wood products from Canada, or may 
be provided on a separate certificate.) Outdoor household articles and 
mobile homes and their associated equipment that are being moved from a 
Canadian noninfested area may be imported into any area of the United 
States without restriction.
    Our proposed removal of areas in British Columbia from the list of 
Canadian infested areas would eliminate the costs associated with the 
phytosanitary certificates required by our Canadian gypsy moth 
regulations for most regulated articles moved from British Columbia 
into or through U.S. noninfested areas. Some regulated articles, i.e., 
trees with roots and shrubs with roots and persistent woody stems, 
would still require a Canadian phytosanitary certificate under our 
nursery stock regulations in 7 CFR 319.37-4. For most affected 
entities, therefore, the costs associated with phytosanitary 
certifications would be replaced with the costs associated with 
certifications of origin. The cost of a Canadian phytosanitary 
certificate is $7 or $17 (Canadian), depending on the value of the 
shipment; the fee for an associated pre-export inspection ranges from 
$15 to $50 (Canadian) per lot, depending on the type of article 
presented for inspection. The costs associated with certifications of 
origin, which are prepared and signed by the exporter, are minimal, 
given that those certifications require little processing time and no 
inspection costs or administrative fees.
    While we do not have information on the number and size of entities 
in British Columbia that might be affected by this proposed rule, the 
areas within British Columbia that we are proposing to remove from the 
list of gypsy moth infested areas represent a small portion of the 
province as a whole, so few entities are likely to be affected. 
Therefore, we expect this proposed rule would have little economic 
effect on affected entities, whether small or large.
    In addition, Canada has been and is by far the largest source of 
U.S. imports of the regulated products, and British Columbia is a large 
source within Canada. This continued to be the case even after our 
regulations concerning gypsy moth host material from Canada were 
established in 1999. Therefore, the decrease in costs is not expected 
to have a significant effect on this pattern. Thus, the overall effect 
upon price and competitiveness is expected to be positive but 
relatively insignificant.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant

[[Page 40876]]

Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12988

    This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, 
Civil Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted: (1) All State 
and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule 
will be preempted; (2) no retroactive effect will be given to this 
rule; and (3) administrative proceedings will not be required before 
parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This proposed rule contains no 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 319

    Bees, Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Honey, Imports, Logs, Nursery Stock, 
Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Rice, Vegetables.

    Accordingly, we propose to amend 7 CFR part 319 as follows:

PART 319--FOREIGN QUARANTINE NOTICES

    1. The authority citation for part 319 would continue to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 166, 450, 7711-7714, 7718, 7731, 7732, and 
7751-7754; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.


Sec. 319.77-3  [Amended]

    2. In Sec. 319.77-3, paragraph (a) would be removed and paragraphs 
(b) through (e) would be redesignated as paragraphs (a) through (d), 
respectively.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 11th day of June, 2002 .
Peter Fernandez,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 02-15074 Filed 6-13-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P