[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 20 (Thursday, January 30, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4867-4868]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-01761]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2013-0095]


Notice of Availability of a Treatment Evaluation Document for 
Methyl Bromide Treatment for Kumquat

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 we have determined that it is 
necessary to immediately add to the Plant Protection and Quarantine 
Treatment Manual a treatment schedule for methyl bromide fumigation of 
kumquats to control certain fruit flies. We have prepared a treatment 
evaluation document that describes the new treatment schedule and 
explains why we have determined that it is effective at neutralizing 
fruit flies. We are making this treatment evaluation document available 
to the public for review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before March 
31, 2014.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2013-0095-0001.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2013-0095, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may 
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2013-
0095 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) 799-7039 before coming.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Marc Phillips, Senior Regulatory 
Policy Specialist with Regulations, Permits and Manuals, PPQ, APHIS, 
4700 River Road Unit 135, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 851-2114.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The regulations in 7 CFR chapter III are 
intended, among other things, to prevent the introduction or 
dissemination of plant pests and noxious weeds into or within the 
United States. Under the regulations, certain plants, fruits, 
vegetables, and other articles must be treated before they may be moved 
into the United States or interstate. The phytosanitary treatments 
regulations contained in part 305 of 7 CFR chapter III (referred to 
below as the regulations) set out standards for treatments required in 
parts 301, 318, and 319 of 7 CFR chapter III for fruits, vegetables, 
and other articles.
    In Sec.  305.2, paragraph (b) states that approved treatment 
schedules are set out in the Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) 
Treatment Manual.\1\ Section 305.3 sets out a process for adding, 
revising, or removing treatment schedules in the PPQ Treatment Manual. 
In that section, paragraph (b) sets out the process for adding, 
revising, or removing treatment schedules when there is an immediate 
need to make a change. The circumstances in which an immediate need 
exists are described in Sec.  305.3(b)(1). They are:
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    \1\ The Treatment Manual is available at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/index.shtml or by 
contacting the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant 
Protection and Quarantine, Manuals Unit, 92 Thomas Johnson Drive, 
Suite 200, Frederick, MD 21702.
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     PPQ has determined that an approved treatment schedule is 
ineffective at neutralizing the targeted plant pest(s).
     PPQ has determined that, in order to neutralize the 
targeted plant pest(s), the treatment schedule must be administered 
using a different process than was previously used.
     PPQ has determined that a new treatment schedule is 
effective, based on efficacy data, and that ongoing trade in a 
commodity or commodities may be adversely impacted unless the new 
treatment schedule is approved for use.
     The use of a treatment schedule is no longer authorized by 
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or by any other Federal 
entity.
    We have determined that a new methyl bromide fumigation treatment 
schedule to control the fruit flies Ceratitis capitata and Anastrepha 
fraterculus on kumquat (Fortunella japonica) is effective, and we have 
determined that ongoing trade in kumquat will be adversely impacted 
unless the new treatment is approved for use.
    On July 10, 2013, we published in the Federal Register (78 FR 
41259-41265, Docket No. APHIS-2011-0060) a rule \2\ to amend the 
regulations to allow the importation of several species of fresh citrus 
and Citrus hybrids (``citrus fruit''), including kumquat, from Uruguay 
into the continental United States under certain conditions. Under 
Sec.  319.56-59, citrus fruit other than lemons must be treated in 
accordance with part 305, and lemons may be imported without treatment 
if harvested green between May 15 and August 31; otherwise, lemons must 
be treated as well.
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    \2\ To view the rule and supporting documents, including the 
environmental assessment, go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0060.
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    Currently, there are cold treatment schedules listed in the PPQ 
Treatment Manual to mitigate the risk of fruit flies on many citrus 
varieties, but there is currently no treatment available for kumquat 
from Uruguay.
    Therefore, in accordance with Sec.  305.3(b)(2), we have determined 
that it is necessary to immediately add a new treatment schedule for 
kumquat in the PPQ Treatment Manual. Based on existing treatments of 
several citrus commodities to control C. capitata and A. fraterculus, 
we are adding a new treatment schedule, T101-n-3, to treat kumquat for 
C. capitata and A. fraterculus when imported into the United States 
from countries that are authorized to export kumquat to the United 
States. The addition of the methyl bromide treatment for kumquat will 
ensure adequate quarantine security from fruit flies, and resolve the 
inconsistency inherent in Sec.  319.56-59 that lists kumquat as a fruit 
that may be imported into the continental United States if treated in 
accordance with part 305 for C. capitata and A. fraterculus.
    This treatment schedule will be listed in a separate section of the 
PPQ Treatment Manual, which will indicate that T101-n-3 was added 
through the immediate process described in Sec.  305.3(b) and that is 
subject to change or removal based on public comment.
    The reasons for this revision are described in a treatment 
evaluation document (TED) we have prepared to support this action. The 
TED may be viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site or in our reading 
room. You may also request paper copies of the TED by calling or 
writing to the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    We are also announcing that we have prepared a finding of no 
significant

[[Page 4868]]

impact (FONSI) for this action. The FONSI, which is based on the 
environmental assessment (EA) prepared for the rulemaking that led to 
our July 2013 final rule, documents our conclusion that the importation 
of kumquats from Uruguay under the conditions prescribed in our July 
2013 final rule, including treatment in accordance with the PPQ 
Treatment Manual, will not have a significant impact on the quality of 
the human environment.
    The EA and FONSI were 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).
    After reviewing the comments we receive, we will announce our 
decision regarding the new treatment schedule that is described in the 
TED in a subsequent notice, in accordance with paragraph (b)(3) of 
Sec.  305.3. If we do not receive any comments, or the comments we 
receive do not change our determination that the treatment is 
effective, we will affirm the treatment schedule's addition to the PPQ 
Treatment Manual and make available a new version of the PPQ Treatment 
Manual in which T101-n-3 is listed in the main body of the manual. If 
we receive comments that lead us to determine that T101-n-3 needs to be 
changed or removed, we will make available a new version of the PPQ 
Treatment Manual that reflects the changes to or the removal of 
treatment schedule T101-n-3.

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 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 23rd day of January 2014.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-01761 Filed 1-29-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P