[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 85 (Thursday, May 2, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18765-18766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-08965]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2019-0014]
Notice of Availability of a Pest Risk Analysis for the
Importation of Fresh Sapodilla Fruit From Mexico 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
sapodilla fruit from Mexico 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 sapodilla fruit from Mexico. 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 July
1, 2019.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-0014.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2019-0014, 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-2019-
0014 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
[[Page 18766]]
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, Regulatory Coordination and Compliance, PPQ, APHIS,
4700 River Road, Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 851-2114.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the regulations in ``Subpart L-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 Mexico to allow the importation of fresh
sapodilla fruit (Manilkara zapota van Royen) into the continental
United States. As part of our evaluation of Mexico's request, we have
prepared a pest list to identify pests of quarantine significance that
could follow the pathway of importation of fresh sapodilla fruit into
the continental United States from Mexico. Based on the pest list, a
risk management document (RMD) was prepared to identify phytosanitary
measures that could be applied to the fresh sapodilla fruit to mitigate
the pest risk.
We have concluded that fresh sapodilla fruit can be safely imported
from Mexico 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 Mexico 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,
Phytosanitary treatment (irradiation with a minimum
absorbed dose of 400 Gy),
Pre-export inspection by the NPPO and issuance of a
phytosanitary certificate stating that the consignment was inspected
and found free of quarantine pests, 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 pest list and RMD for public review
and comment. Those documents, as well as a description of the economic
considerations associated with the importation of fresh sapodilla fruit
from Mexico, 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 sapodilla fruit from
Mexico 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 sapodilla fruit from Mexico 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 26th day of April 2019.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-08965 Filed 5-1-19; 8:45 am]
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