[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 102 (Tuesday, May 28, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24463-24464]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-11026]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2019-0002]


Notice of Availability of an Environmental Assessment for the 
Release of Aphalara Itadori for the Biological Control of Japanese, 
Giant, and Bohemian Knotweeds

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service has prepared an environmental assessment relative to 
permitting the release of Aphalara itadori for the biological control 
of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian knotweeds (Fallopia japonica, F. 
sachalinensis, and F. x bohemica), significant invasive weeds, within 
the contiguous United States. Based on the environmental assessment and 
other relevant data, we have reached a preliminary determination that 
the release of this biological control organism will not have a 
significant impact on the quality of the human environment. 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 June 
27, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-0002.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2019-0002, 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

[[Page 24464]]

may be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-
2019-0002 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) 7997039 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) 851-2237; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Invasive knotweeds in North America are a 
complex of three closely related species in the family Polygonaceae 
that were introduced from Japan during the late 19th century. They 
include Fallopia japonica (Japanese knotweed), F. sachalinensis (Giant 
knotweed), and the hybrid between the two, F. x bohemica (Bohemian 
knotweed). These large herbaceous perennials have spread throughout 
much of North America, with the greatest infestations in the Pacific 
Northwest, the northeast of the United States, and eastern Canada. 
While capable of growing in diverse habitats, the knotweeds have become 
especially problematic along the banks and floodplains of rivers and 
streams, where they crowd out native plants and potentially affect 
stream nutrients and food webs. While several States have active 
control programs against knotweeds, the inaccessibility of some of the 
infestations and the difficulty with which the plants are killed 
suggest that complete eradication of knotweeds within the United States 
is unlikely.
    The Hokkaido and Kyushu biotypes of the insect Aphalara itadori 
were chosen as potential biological control organisms. The biotypes are 
expected to reduce the severity of infestations of Japanese, Giant, and 
Bohemian knotweed, and are known to be highly host specific due to 
their intimate relationship with their host plants.
    The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's (APHIS') review 
and analysis of the potential environmental impacts associated with the 
proposed release are documented in detail in an environmental 
assessment (EA) entitled ``Field Release of the Knotweed Psyllid 
Aphalara itadori (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) for Classical Biological 
Control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian Knotweeds, Fallopia japonica, 
F. sachalinensis, and F. x bohemica (Polygonaceae), in the Contiguous 
United States, Environmental Assessment'' (April 2018). 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 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 
also 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 
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 21st day of May 2019.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-11026 Filed 5-24-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P