[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 240 (Friday, December 14, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64314-64315]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-27053]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2018-0073]


Notice of Availability of a Pest Risk Analysis for the 
Importation of Fresh Guava Fruit From Taiwan Into the Continental 
United States

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that we have prepared a pest risk 
analysis that evaluates the risks associated with importation of fresh 
guava fruit from Taiwan into the continental United States. Based on 
the analysis, we have determined that the application of one or more 
phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the risks of 
introducing or disseminating plant pests or noxious weeds via the 
importation of fresh guava fruit from Taiwan. We are making the pest 
risk analysis available to the public for review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
February 12, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2018-0073.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2018-0073, 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-2018-
0073 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. Tony Rom[aacute]n, Senior 
Regulatory Policy Specialist, Regulatory Coordination and Compliance, 
PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 
851-2242.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the regulations in ``Subpart-Fruits 
and Vegetables'' (7 CFR 319.56-1 through 319.56-12, referred to below 
as the regulations), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 
(APHIS) prohibits or restricts the importation of fruits and vegetables 
into the United States from certain parts of the world to prevent plant 
pests from being introduced into or disseminated within the United 
States.
    Section 319.56-4 contains a performance-based process for approving 
the importation of certain fruits and vegetables that, based on the 
findings of a pest risk analysis, can be safely imported subject to one 
or more of the five designated phytosanitary measures listed in 
paragraph (b) of that section.
    APHIS received a request from the national plant protection 
organization (NPPO) of Taiwan to allow the importation of fresh guava 
fruit (Psidium guajava) into the continental United States. As part of 
our evaluation of Taiwan's request, we have prepared a pest risk 
assessment (PRA) to identify pests of quarantine significance that 
could follow the pathway of importation of fresh guava fruit into the 
continental United States from Taiwan. Based on the PRA, a risk 
management document (RMD) was prepared to identify phytosanitary 
measures that could be applied to the fresh guava fruit to mitigate the 
pest risk.
    We have concluded that fresh guava fruit can be safely imported 
from Taiwan into the continental United States using one or more of the 
five designated phytosanitary measures listed in Sec.  319.56-4(b). The 
NPPO of Taiwan would have to enter into an operational workplan with 
APHIS that spells out the daily procedures the NPPO will take to 
implement the measures identified in the RMD. These measures are 
summarized below:
     Importation in commercial shipments only,
     Registration of places of production and packinghouses 
with the NPPO of Taiwan,
     Regular inspections of places of production by the NPPO,
     Grove sanitation and trapping for fruit flies in places of 
production,
     Safeguarding and identification of the lot throughout the 
growing, packing and export process,

[[Page 64315]]

     Phytosanitary treatment (cold treatment or irradiation),
     Pre-export inspection by the NPPO and issuance of a 
phytosanitary certificate with an additional declaration, and
     Port of entry inspections.
    Each of the pest risk mitigation measures that would be required, 
along with evidence of their efficacy in removing pests of concern from 
the pathway, are described in detail in the RMD.
    Therefore, in accordance with Sec.  319.56-4(c)(3), we are 
announcing the availability of our PRA and RMD for public review and 
comment. Those documents, as well as a description of the economic 
considerations associated with the importation of fresh guava fruit 
from Taiwan and a treatment evaluation document that supports the 
addition of new cold treatment schedules for Bactrocera spp. fruit 
flies in guava from Taiwan, may be viewed on the Regulations.gov 
website 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 these documents by 
calling or writing to the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. Please refer to the subject of the analysis you wish to review 
when requesting copies.
    After reviewing any comments we receive, we will announce our 
decision regarding the import status of fresh guava fruit from Taiwan 
in a subsequent notice. If the overall conclusions of our analysis and 
the Administrator's determination of risk remain unchanged following 
our consideration of the comments, then we will authorize the 
importation of fresh guava fruit from Taiwan into the continental 
United States subject to the requirements specified in the RMD.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1633, 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 10th day of December 2018.
 Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-27053 Filed 12-13-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-34-P