[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 182 (Friday, September 19, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 54797-54800]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-23953]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 68, No. 182 / Friday, September 19, 2003 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 54797]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 82

[Docket No. 02-117-10]


Exotic Newcastle Disease; Removal of Areas From Quarantine

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: We are amending the exotic Newcastle disease regulations by 
removing portions of Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San 
Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, CA, from the list of quarantined 
areas. This action removes restrictions on the movement of birds, 
poultry, and certain other articles from those areas. With this action, 
there are no longer any areas in the United States that are quarantined 
because of exotic Newcastle disease.

DATES: This interim rule was effective September 16, 2003. We will 
consider all comments that we receive on or before November 18, 2003.

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. 02-117-10, 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. 02-117-10. 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. 
02-117-10'' 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: Dr. Aida Boghossian, Senior Staff 
Veterinarian, Emergency Programs Staff, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 
41, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-8073.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Exotic Newcastle disease (END) is a contagious and fatal viral 
disease affecting the respiratory, nervous, and digestive systems of 
birds and poultry. END is so virulent that many birds and poultry die 
without showing any clinical signs. A death rate of almost 100 percent 
can occur in unvaccinated poultry flocks. END can infect and cause 
death even in vaccinated poultry.
    The regulations in ``Subpart A--Exotic Newcastle Disease (END)'' (9 
CFR 82.1 through 82.16, referred to below as the regulations) were 
established to prevent the spread of END in the United States in the 
event of an outbreak. In Sec.  82.3, paragraph (a) provides that any 
area where birds or poultry infected with END are located will be 
designated as a quarantined area, and that a quarantined area is any 
geographical area, which may be a premises or all or part of a State, 
deemed by epidemiological evaluation to be sufficient to contain all 
birds or poultry known to be infected with or exposed to END.
    Prior to the effective date of this interim rule, portions of Kern, 
Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, 
CA, were designated as quarantined areas in Sec.  82.3(c) of the 
regulations. As a result, the interstate movement from those 
quarantined areas of birds, poultry, products, and materials that could 
spread END was prohibited or restricted. Further, because the Secretary 
of Agriculture declared an extraordinary emergency because of END in 
California, the intrastate movement from the quarantined areas of 
birds, poultry, products, and materials that could spread END was 
prohibited or restricted, as provided by the regulations in Sec.  
82.16.

Previous Quarantine Actions

    On October 1, 2002, END was confirmed in the State of California. 
The disease was confirmed in backyard poultry, which are raised on 
private premises for hobby, exhibition, and personal consumption. Over 
the course of the following months, END was confirmed in backyard and 
commercial poultry on premises elsewhere in California and in backyard 
poultry in Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. Consequently, in a series of six 
interim rules published in the Federal Register between November 2002 
and May 2003, we amended the regulations in Sec.  82.3(c) by 
designating specific portions of each of those States as quarantined 
areas. As of May 2003, all or portions of three counties in Arizona, 
nine counties in California, two counties in Nevada, three counties in 
New Mexico, and two counties in Texas were designated as quarantined 
areas in Sec.  82.3(c). As provided for by the regulations in Sec.  
82.3(a), these quarantined areas encompassed each area where poultry 
infected with END were located and a surrounding geographical area 
deemed by epidemiological evaluation to be sufficient to contain all 
birds or poultry known to be infected with or exposed to END.

Previous Reductions in Quarantined Areas

    Beginning in May 2003, we began releasing areas from quarantine 
after Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 
epidemiologists determined, based on the results of extensive 
investigations conducted in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, 
and Texas, that it was possible to reduce the size of the quarantined 
areas in those States. Specifically:
    [sbull] In an interim rule effective May 14, 2003, and published in 
the Federal Register on May 19, 2003 (68 FR 26986-26988, Docket No. 02-
117-6), we

[[Page 54798]]

reduced the size of the quarantined areas in Nevada and Arizona, 
leaving only portions of La Paz County, AZ, and Clark County, NV, as 
quarantined areas in those States.
    [sbull] In an interim rule effective June 5, 2003, and published in 
the Federal Register on June 11, 2003 (68 FR 34779-34781, Docket No. 
02-117-8), we reduced the size of the quarantined areas in Texas and 
eliminated the quarantined areas in New Mexico, leaving only a portion 
of El Paso County, TX, as a quarantined area in that State.
    [sbull] In an interim rule effective July 30, 2003, and published 
in the Federal Register on August 4, 2003 (68 FR 45741-45745, Docket 
No. 02-117-9), we eliminated the last remaining quarantined areas in 
Arizona, Nevada, and Texas and reduced the size of the quarantined 
areas in California, leaving only portions of Kern, Los Angeles, 
Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, CA, as 
quarantined areas in that State.

Additional Reductions in Quarantined Areas

    In this interim rule, we are eliminating the last remaining 
quarantined areas in California. The portion of Orange County that we 
are removing from quarantine is an area in which END has not been 
found, but which was included in the quarantined area due to its 
proximity to areas in adjoining counties where END-positive premises 
were found. Our actions with respect to Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, 
San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties--areas that had, at one time, 
contained infected premises--are based upon our determination that the 
areas in those counties meet the criteria contained in Sec.  82.14 of 
the regulations for release from quarantine. Our basis for these 
actions is discussed in greater detail below.

Areas in Which END Has Not Been Found

    No END-positive premises were detected in Orange County, CA. 
Surveillance and testing of poultry premises was carried out in this 
area and resulted in no END-positive premises being detected.
    Noncommercial premises. An inventory of at-risk noncommercial 
premises was developed for the areas targeted for quarantine release. 
In addition to information previously collected through eradication 
activities, sources of information included local animal control 
authorities, local law enforcement, county agricultural officials, 
extension personnel, and animal welfare workers.
    Surveillance efforts were concentrated in areas that had at-risk 
premises. An at-risk premises was defined as a premises inhabited by 
poultry or ratites or that contained an aviary. Within this population, 
premises considered highest risk were targeted for sampling. High risk 
premises were defined as any premises with any galliform birds 
(chickens, turkeys, pheasant, quail, partridge, guinea fowl, pea fowl, 
etc.), columbiform birds (pigeons, doves), or anseriform birds (ducks, 
geese, swans). Other factors considered indicative of high risk were 
multiple owners on the same premises, premises with sick or dead birds, 
history of movement of birds, and possible contact with an infected 
premises.
    The sampling period for the small portion of Orange County, CA, 
that had remained under quarantine was from July 20 through August 20, 
2003. A total of 5 at-risk premises were sampled from a population of 
48 at-risk premises in the area. None of the samples yielded a positive 
result.
    Commercial premises. No commercial poultry premises were located in 
the Orange County, CA, quarantined area.
    As noted previously, the regulations in Sec.  82.3(a) provide that 
any area where birds or poultry infected with END are located will be 
designated as a quarantined area, and that a quarantined area is any 
geographical area, which may be a premises or all or part of a State, 
deemed by epidemiological evaluation to be sufficient to contain all 
birds or poultry known to be infected with or exposed to END.
    APHIS epidemiologists have evaluated the results of the 
investigations conducted in Orange County, CA, and have determined that 
we may now eliminate the quarantined area in that county. This 
determination is based on, among other things, the demonstrated absence 
of birds or poultry infected with or exposed to END in that area. The 
regulations in Sec.  82.14 provide requirements that must be met before 
an area may be removed from quarantine, but those requirements relate 
to measures taken with respect to END- infected or -exposed birds and 
poultry, their eggs and manure, and articles and premises with which 
such birds or their manure or litter have come in contact. As there 
were no END-infected or -exposed birds or poultry in the portion of 
Orange County, CA, that has been under quarantine for END, there are no 
requirements under Sec.  82.14 that need to be met before that area can 
be removed from quarantine.

Areas That Contained Infected Premises

    An area where END-positive premises have been detected is known as 
an ``infected area.'' The infected area in California had a total of 
920 END-positive premises, 900 of which were located in Kern, Los 
Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties. (The 
remaining 20 END-positive premises had been located in San Diego 
County, CA, which we released from quarantine in our August 4, 2003, 
interim rule.) Fourteen of those 900 premises were commercial poultry 
premises. All birds on all infected premises, and any premises exposed 
to those infected premises, were depopulated. The date of depopulation 
on the final END-positive premises in each county still under 
quarantine in the infected area of California was:
    [sbull] Ventura County: April 9, 2003;
    [sbull] Kern County: May 12, 2003;
    [sbull] Riverside County: May 20, 2003;
    [sbull] San Bernardino County: May 22, 2003; and
    [sbull] Los Angeles County: June 1, 2003.
    Intensive surveillance and testing of both noncommercial and 
commercial poultry premises was carried out in the infected area and 
resulted in no additional END positive premises being detected.
    Noncommercial premises. An inventory of at-risk noncommercial 
premises was developed for the infected area. Surveillance efforts were 
then concentrated in portions of the infected area that had at-risk 
premises. An at-risk premises was defined as a premises inhabited by 
poultry, ratites, or an aviary. Within this population, premises 
considered highest risk were targeted for sampling.
    In the infected area of Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, San 
Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, CA, all of the sampling was conducted 
during the period from June 15 through August 20, 2003. The majority of 
the sampling was conducted during the period from July 5 to August 9, 
2003. Overall, a total of 4,544 at-risk premises were sampled from a 
population of 22,745 at-risk premises in the infected area. Over 57,500 
birds were sampled and tested for the END virus. None of the samples 
yielded a positive result.

Table 1.--At-risk Noncommercial Premises Sampled by County in California
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Number of
                            County                              premises
                                                                sampled
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kern.........................................................         56

[[Page 54799]]

 
Los Angeles..................................................      2,027
Riverside....................................................      1,229
San Bernardino...............................................      1,142
Ventura......................................................         90
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Commercial premises. Active weekly surveillance of commercial 
poultry premises in the infected area began as early as December 2002. 
All but five commercial premises with birds have been under weekly 
active surveillance for at least 6 weeks and have a documented 
biosecurity protocol in place. Of the remaining five commercial 
premises, one (a premises with quail) has been under weekly active 
surveillance for at least 4 weeks and four (two with ostriches, one 
with ducks, and one hatchery) are under passive surveillance. All these 
commercial premises must report any significant increase in death 
losses or the occurrences of clinical signs consistent with END.
    A total of 93 commercial poultry premises are located in the 
infected area, of which 72 premises had birds present. The 21 other 
commercial premises are egg processors and did not participate in 
active surveillance. Fourteen of the 72 premises that had birds present 
were found to be infected, and 1 premises was found to have been 
exposed to infected premises; all 15 were depopulated, and 6 other 
premises were emptied of birds by their owners for other reasons. With 
5 of the 15 depopulated premises having been repopulated, there were 56 
premises with birds in the infected area. A representative sampling of 
either live or dead birds from each poultry house on 52 of those 56 
premises with birds was performed weekly. The other four commercial 
premises with birds were under passive surveillance. Sample collection 
was done by either an accredited veterinarian or authorized company 
personnel. No END positive premises were found.
    We have determined that all applicable requirements of Sec.  82.14 
to remove an area from quarantine have been met with respect to the 
remaining areas in California. Specifically, we have determined the 
following:
    [sbull] All birds and poultry exposed to END have been found to be 
free of END or have been euthanized;
    [sbull] All birds and poultry infected with END have been 
euthanized;
    [sbull] All parts of all birds and poultry that were euthanized or 
that died from any cause other than slaughter, all eggs produced by 
birds or poultry infected with or exposed to END, and all manure 
generated by and litter used by birds or poultry infected with or 
exposed to END have been buried at least 6 feet deep and covered at the 
time of burial with soil in a location within the quarantined area that 
meets all U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), State, and local 
requirements for landfills;
    [sbull] All vehicles with which the birds or poultry infected with 
or exposed to END or their excrement or litter have had physical 
contact have been cleaned and disinfected in the manner prescribed in 
Sec.  82.14(f);
    [sbull] All cages, coops, containers, troughs, and other equipment 
used for birds or poultry infected with or exposed to END or their 
excrement or litter have been reduced to ashes by incineration or have 
been cleaned and disinfected in the manner prescribed in Sec.  
82.14(g); and
    [sbull] The premises where birds or poultry infected with or 
exposed to END were located have been cleaned and disinfected in the 
manner prescribed in Sec.  82.14(h).

Conclusion

    Based on the information presented above, we are amending Sec.  
82.3(c) in this interim rule by removing the remaining portions of 
Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura 
Counties, CA, from the list of quarantined areas because the continued 
quarantine of these areas is no longer necessary to contain all birds 
and poultry infected with or exposed to END. With this action, there 
are no longer any areas in the United States that are quarantined 
because of END.

Immediate Action

    Immediate action is warranted to relieve restrictions that are no 
longer necessary. We have determined that portions of Kern, Los 
Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, CA, 
may now be removed from the list of areas quarantined because of END. 
Therefore, immediate action is warranted to relieve the prohibitions or 
restrictions that have applied to the movement of birds, poultry, 
products, and other materials from those areas. Under these 
circumstances, the Administrator has determined that prior notice and 
opportunity for public comment are contrary to the public interest and 
that there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 for making this action 
effective less than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.
    We will consider comments that we receive during the comment period 
for this interim rule (see DATES above). After the comment period 
closes, we will publish another document in the Federal Register. The 
document will include a discussion of any comments we receive and any 
amendments we are making to the rule.

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 under 
Executive Order 12866.
    This rule amends the regulations by removing portions of Kern, Los 
Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties, CA, 
from the list of quarantined areas. This action needs to be made 
effective immediately in order to remove restrictions on the movement 
of birds, poultry, and certain other articles from those areas that are 
no longer necessary.
    This situation makes timely compliance with section 604 of the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) impracticable. We are 
currently assessing the potential economic effects of this action on 
small entities. Based on that assessment, we will either certify that 
the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities or publish a final regulatory flexibility 
analysis.

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

[[Page 54800]]

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 82

    Animal diseases, Poultry and poultry products, Quarantine, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.

0
Accordingly, 9 CFR part 82 is amended as follows:

PART 82--EXOTIC NEWCASTLE DISEASE (END) AND CHLAMYDIOSIS

0
1. The authority citation for part 82 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 8301-8317; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.


0
2. In Sec.  82.3, paragraph (c) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  82.3  Quarantined areas.

* * * * *
    (c) The following areas are quarantined because of END: There are 
no areas in the United States quarantined because of END.

    Done in Washington, DC this 16th day of September 2003.
Bobby R. Acord,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 03-23953 Filed 9-18-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P