[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 133 (Thursday, July 13, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32317-32318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14694]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2017-0025]


Availability of an Environmental Assessment for Release of Three 
Parasitoids for Biological Control of the Lily Leaf Beetle

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 a draft environmental assessment 
relative to the release of three parasitoids, Diaparsis jucunda, 
Lemophagus errabundus, and Tetrastichus setifer for the biological 
control of the lily leaf beetle. The environmental assessment considers 
the effects of, and alternatives to, the field release of the 
parasitoids into the contiguous United States for use as a biological 
control agent to reduce the severity of infestations of lily leaf 
beetle. 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 
August 14, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2017-0025.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2017-0025, 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-2017-
0025 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: Dr. Colin D. Stewart, Assistant 
Director, Pests, Pathogens, and Biocontrol Permits Permitting and 
Compliance Coordination, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 133, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 851-2327, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Lilies (Lillium spp.) and fritillaries 
(Fritillaria spp.) are prized for their blooms, whether the showy and 
enormous Asiatic hybrids or the subtle, fleeting flowers of 
fritillaries. The aesthetic value of lilies and fritillaries extends to 
wild lands, where the flowers are a significant visual feature during 
their bloom, adorning alpine ridges, swampy bottomlands, and desert 
shrublands alike. The lily leaf beetle, Lilioceris lilii (Coleptera: 
Chrysomelidae), an aggressive pest of lilies and fritillaries, has 
expanded its range rapidly over the past decade, and is now found in 
several northeastern and central States, across Canada, and in 
Washington State. Further expansion is expected based on its historical 
distribution in nearly all of Europe and parts of North Africa. The 
Washington State Department of Agriculture is proposing to release 
three insect parasitoid species for the biological control of the lily 
leaf beetle; none of these species have been previously released or 
established in Washington State. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service (APHIS) is proposing to issue permits for the field release of 
the parasitoids Diaparsis jucunda, Lemophagus errabundus, and 
Tetrastichus setifer into the continental United States to reduce the 
severity of lily leaf beetle infestations.
    APHIS' review and analysis of the proposed action are documented in 
detail in a draft environmental assessment (EA) entitled ``Field 
release of Diaparsis jucunda (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), Lemophagus 
errabundus (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), and Tetrastichus setifer 
(Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) for biological control of the lily leaf 
beetle, Lilioceris lilii (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in the Contiguous 
United States'' (January 2017). 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 a link to 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 person 
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

[[Page 32318]]

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, this 7th day of July 2017.
Michael C. Gregoire,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-14694 Filed 7-12-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P