[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 26, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44572-44573]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-18845]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2011-0072]


Plants for Planting Whose Importation Is Not Authorized Pending 
Pest Risk Analysis; Notice of Availability of Data Sheets for Taxa of 
Plants for Planting That Are Quarantine Pests or Hosts of Quarantine 
Pests

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that we have determined that 41 
taxa of plants for planting are quarantine pests and 107 taxa of plants 
for planting are hosts of 13 quarantine pests and therefore should be 
added to our lists of taxa of plants for planting whose importation is 
not authorized pending pest risk analysis. We have prepared data sheets 
that detail the scientific evidence we evaluated in making the 
determination that the taxa are quarantine pests or hosts of quarantine 
pests. We are making these data sheets available to the public for 
review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
September 26, 2011.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0072-0001.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2011-0072, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    The data sheets and any comments we receive may be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0072 or in our reading 
room, which 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Arnold Tschanz, Senior Plant 
Pathologist/Senior Risk Manager, Plants for Planting Policy, RPM, PPQ, 
APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-
0627.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    Under the regulations in ``Subpart--Plants for Planting'' (7 CFR 
319.37 through 319.37-14, referred to below as the regulations), the 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture prohibits or restricts the importation of 
plants for planting (including living plants, plant parts, seeds, and 
plant cuttings) to prevent the introduction of quarantine pests into 
the United States. Quarantine pest is defined in Sec.  319.37-1 as a 
plant pest or noxious weed that is of potential economic importance to 
the United States and not yet present in the United States, or present 
but not widely distributed and being officially controlled.
    In a final rule published in the Federal Register on May 27, 2011 
(76 FR 31172-31210, Docket No. APHIS-2006-0011), and effective on June 
27, 2011, we established in Sec.  319.37-2a a new category of plants 
for planting whose importation is not authorized pending pest risk 
analysis (NAPPRA) in order to prevent the introduction of quarantine 
pests into the United States. The final rule established two lists of 
taxa whose importation is NAPPRA: A list of taxa of plants for planting 
that are quarantine pests, and a list of taxa of plants for planting 
that are hosts of quarantine pests. For taxa of plants for planting 
that have been determined to be quarantine pests, the list will include 
the names of the taxa. For taxa of plants for planting that are hosts 
of quarantine pests, the list will include the names of the taxa, the 
foreign places from which the taxa's importation is not authorized, and 
the quarantine pests of concern. The final rule did not add any taxa to 
the NAPPRA lists.
    Paragraph (b) of Sec.  319.37-2a describes the process for adding 
taxa to the NAPPRA lists. In accordance with that process, this notice 
announces our determination that 41 taxa of plants for planting are 
quarantine pests and 107 taxa of plants for planting are hosts of 13 
quarantine pests.
    This notice also makes available data sheets that detail the 
scientific evidence we evaluated in making the determination that the 
taxa are quarantine pests or hosts of a quarantine

[[Page 44573]]

pest. The data sheets include references to the scientific evidence we 
used in making these determinations.
    A complete list of the taxa of plants for planting that we have 
determined to be quarantine pests or hosts of quarantine pests, along 
with the data sheets supporting those determinations, may be viewed on 
the Regulations.gov Web site or in our reading room (see ADDRESSES 
above for a link to Regulations.gov and information on the location and 
hours of the reading room). You may request paper copies of the list 
and data sheets by calling or writing to the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    For taxa of plants for planting that are hosts of quarantine pests, 
the data sheets specify the countries from which the taxa's importation 
would not be authorized pending pest risk analysis. In most cases, the 
importation of the taxa would not be allowed from any country. In some 
cases, the taxa would be allowed to be imported from Canada. We would 
allow such importation when Canada is free of the quarantine pest for 
which the taxa are hosts and when Canada's import regulations and our 
restrictions specific to Canada ensure that the pest would not be 
introduced into the United States through the importation of the taxa 
from Canada.
    In a few cases, the taxa would be allowed to be imported from 
countries that are currently exporting the taxa to the United States, 
subject to restrictions in a Federal Order that was issued previously. 
We would continue to allow such importation based on our experience 
with importing those taxa of plants for planting and our findings, 
through inspection, that they are generally pest free, and based on our 
determination that the restrictions in the Federal Order are sufficient 
to mitigate the risk associated with the quarantine pest in question.
    After reviewing any comments we receive, we will announce our 
decision regarding the addition of the taxa described in the data 
sheets to the NAPPRA lists in a subsequent notice. If the 
Administrator's determination that the taxa are quarantine pests or 
hosts of quarantine pests remains unchanged following our consideration 
of the comments, then we will add the taxa described in the data sheets 
to the appropriate NAPPRA list.

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 450, 7701-7772, and 7781-7786; 21 U.S.C. 
136 and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 20th day of July 2011.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-18845 Filed 7-25-11; 8:45 am]
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