[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 218 (Friday, November 12, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Page 69396]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28471]


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 Notices
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  Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 218 / Friday, November 12, 2010 / 
Notices  

[[Page 69396]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2010-0108]


Availability of an Environmental Assessment for a Biological 
Control Agent for Arundo donax

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service has prepared an environmental assessment relative to 
the control of Arundo donax (giant reed, Carrizo cane). The 
environmental assessment considers the effects of, and alternatives to, 
the release of Arundo scale into the continental United States for use 
as a biological control agent to reduce the severity of Arundo donax 
infestations. We are making the environmental assessment available to 
the public for review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
December 13, 2010.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2010-0108 to submit or view comments and 
to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send one copy of 
your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2010-0108, Regulatory Analysis and 
Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your comment refers to 
Docket No. APHIS-2010-0108.
    Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on the 
environmental assessment 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: Additional information about APHIS and its 
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Shirley A. Wager-Page, Chief, Pest 
Permitting Branch, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 
20737-1237; (301) 734-8453.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is proposing 
to issue permits for the release of Arundo scale, Rhizaspidiotus 
donacis (Leonardi), into the continental United States for use as a 
biological control agent to reduce the severity of Arundo donax 
infestations.
    A. donax is a highly invasive, bamboo-like weed that was introduced 
to North America in the early 1500s for its fiber uses. It is among the 
fastest growing plants in the continental United States, making it a 
severe threat to riparian areas, where it causes erosion, damages 
bridges, alters channel morphology, increases costs for chemical and 
mechanical control along transportation corridors, and impedes law 
enforcement activities along international borders. Additionally, A. 
donax consumes excessive amounts of water, competing for water 
resources in arid regions where these resources are critical to the 
environment, agriculture, and municipal users.
    Existing A. donax management options include herbicides, prescribed 
fires, biomass removal, and other methods. However, these management 
measures are expensive, temporary, and have impacts on species other 
than A. donax. Therefore, APHIS is proposing to issue permits for the 
release of Arundo scale into the continental United States in order to 
reduce the severity and extent of A. donax infestations.
    The proposed biological control agent, Arundo scale, is one of the 
most damaging insects to A. donax in its native range. The scale 
attacks the rhizome and developing underground buds of A. donax by 
feeding on cells that carry out photosynthesis and cellular 
respiration, resulting over time in gradual thinning, leaf reduction, 
and a sickly, yellowish-clouded appearance of the weed. While Arundo 
scale may not be singularly successful in reducing the A. donax 
population in the continental United States, its use is expected to be 
effective in combination with other control methods or biological 
control agents that may be released in the future.
    APHIS' review and analysis of the proposed action are documented in 
detail in an environmental assessment (EA) entitled ``Field Release of 
the Arundo Scale, Rhizaspidiotus donacis (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), an 
Insect for Biological Control of Arundo donax (Poaceae) in the 
Continental United States'' (September 2010). We are making the EA 
available to the public for review and comment. We will consider all 
comments that we receive on or before the date listed under the heading 
DATES at the beginning of this notice.
    The EA may be viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site or in 
our reading room (see ADDRESSES above for instructions for accessing 
Regulations.gov and information on the location and hours of the 
reading room). You may request paper copies of the EA by calling or 
writing to the persons listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 
Please refer to the title of the EA when requesting copies.
    The EA has been prepared in accordance with: (1) The National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.), (2) regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality for 
implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-
1508), (3) USDA regulations implementing NEPA (7 CFR part 1b), and (4) 
APHIS' NEPA Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 372).

    Done in Washington, DC, November 2010.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-28471 Filed 11-10-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P