[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 158 (Tuesday, August 17, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51056-51057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-18786]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. 04-072-1]


Notice of Request for Extension of Approval of an Information 
Collection

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Extension of approval of an information collection; comment 
request.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's 
intention to request an extension of approval of an information 
collection in support of regulations preventing the spread of the Asian 
longhorned beetle and restricting the interstate movement of regulated 
articles from the quarantined areas.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
October 18, 2004.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
      EDOCKET: Go to http://www.epa.gov/feddocket to submit or 
view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the 
official public docket, and to access those documents in the public 
docket that are available electronically. Once you have entered 
EDOCKET, click on the ``View Open APHIS Dockets'' link to locate this 
document.
      Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies 
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. 04-072-1, 
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. 04-072-1.
      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. 04-072-1'' on the subject 
line.
      Agency Web Site: Go to http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/cominst.html for a form you can use to submit an e-mail comment through 
the APHIS Web site.
    Reading Room: 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.
    Other Information: You may view APHIS documents published in the 
Federal Register and related information, including the names of groups 
and individuals who have commented on APHIS dockets, on the Internet at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information regarding Asian 
longhorned beetle quarantine regulations, contact Mr. Michael B. 
Stefan, Director of Emergency Programs, Pest Detection and Management 
Programs, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1236; (301) 734-7338. For copies of more detailed information on the 
information collection, contact Mrs. Celeste Sickles, APHIS' 
Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 734-7477.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Asian Longhorned Beetle Regulations.
    OMB Number: 0579-0122.
    Type of Request: Extension of approval of an information 
collection.
    Abstract: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is

[[Page 51057]]

responsible for, among other things, the control and eradication of 
plant pests. The Plant Protection Act authorizes the Department to 
carry out this mission.
    The Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) program of USDA's Animal 
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is responsible for 
implementing the provisions of the Act and does so through the 
enforcement of its domestic quarantine regulations in 7 CFR part 301.
    The Asian longhorned beetle (native to China, Japan, Korea, and the 
Isle of Hainan) is a destructive pest of hardwood trees, including 
maple, elm, ash, and horse chestnut. In addition, nursery stock, logs, 
green lumber, firewood, stumps, roots, branches, and wood debris of a 
half an inch or more in diameter are subject to infestation. The 
beetles bore into the heartwood of host trees, eventually killing the 
tree.
    The Asian longhorned beetle has been found in hardwood trees in the 
boroughs of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens in the city of New York, 
NY, and in portions of Nassau and Suffolk Counties, NY. The Asian 
longhorned beetle has also been found in portions of Cook and DuPage 
Counties, IL, and portions of Hudson County, NJ. If this insect spreads 
into the hardwood forests of the United States, it could cause 
substantial economic harm to the U.S. nursery and forest product 
industries.
    To prevent this, we have regulations in place (7 CFR 301.51-1 
through 301.51-9) quarantining the areas described above. These 
regulations also restrict the movement of regulated articles (such as 
nursery stock, green lumber, firewood, and other items) from these 
quarantined areas.
    These regulations are designed to prevent the spread of the Asian 
longhorned beetle within the United States. Implementing the 
regulations requires us to engage in certain information collection 
activities, which necessitates the use of several forms, including 
limited permits, certificates, and compliance agreements.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
our use of these information collection activities for an additional 3 
years.
    The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public 
(as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection. 
These comments will help us:
    (1) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (2) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used;
    (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, through use, as appropriate, of automated, 
electronic, mechanical, and other collection technologies; e.g., 
permitting electronic submission of responses.
    Estimate of burden: The public reporting burden for this collection 
of information is estimated to average 0.4318 hours per response.
    Respondents: Growers, shippers, exporters, and State plant health 
officials.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 475.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 1.1894.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 565.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 244 hours. (Due to 
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of 
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per 
response.)
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of 
public record.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 11th day of August 2004.
W. Ron DeHaven,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 04-18786 Filed 8-16-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P