[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 131 (Tuesday, July 9, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32700-32701]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-14536]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2019-0034]


Oral Rabies Vaccine Program; Availability of an Environmental 
Assessment

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 an environmental assessment (EA) 
relative to an oral rabies vaccination (ORV) program in Maine, New 
Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and 
West Virginia. The EA analyzes the proposed expanded use of ONRAB 
vaccine-baits throughout the ORV distribution zone in those States in 
cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. The proposed expanded ONRAB 
vaccine distribution is necessary as a higher level of population 
immunity in raccoons is desired in order to maximize the effectiveness 
of ORV programs. We are making the EA available to the public for 
review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
August 8, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-0034.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2019-0034, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    The supplemental environmental assessment and any comments we 
receive may be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-0034 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.
    This notice and the supplemental environmental assessment are also 
posted on the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service website at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/regulations/ws/ws_nepa_environmental_documents.shtml.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Chipman, Rabies Program 
Coordinator, Wildlife Services, APHIS, 59 Chennell Drive, Suite 7, 
Concord, NH 03301; (603) 223-9623; email: [email protected]. 
To obtain copies of the supplemental environmental assessment, contact 
Ms. Beth Kabert, Staff Wildlife Biologist, Wildlife Services, 59 
Chennell Drive, Suite 7, Concord, NH 03301; (908) 442-6761; fax (603) 
229-0502; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Wildlife Services (WS) program in the 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service cooperates with Federal 
agencies, State and local governments, and private individuals to 
research and implement the best methods of managing conflicts between 
wildlife and human health and safety, agriculture, property, and 
natural resources. Wildlife-borne diseases that can affect domestic 
animals and humans are among the types of conflicts that WS addresses. 
Wildlife is the dominant reservoir of rabies in the United States.
    WS conducts an oral rabies vaccination (ORV) program to control the 
spread of rabies. The ORV program has utilized a vaccinia-rabies 
glycoprotein (V-RG) vaccine. WS' use of the V-RG vaccine has resulted 
in several notable accomplishments, including the elimination of canine 
rabies from sources in Mexico, the successful control of gray fox 
rabies virus variant in western Texas, and the

[[Page 32701]]

prevention of any appreciable spread of raccoon rabies in the eastern 
United States. While the prevention of any appreciable spread of 
raccoon rabies in the eastern United States represents a major 
accomplishment in rabies management, the V-RG vaccine has not been 
effective in eliminating raccoon rabies from high-risk spread 
corridors. This fact prompted WS to evaluate rabies vaccines capable of 
producing higher levels of population immunity against raccoon rabies 
to better control the spread of this disease.
    Since 2011, WS has been conducting field trials to study the 
immunogenicity and safety of an experimental oral rabies vaccine, a 
human adenovirus type 5 rabies glycoprotein recombinant vaccine called 
ONRAB (produced by Artemis Technologies Inc., Guelph, Ontario, Canada). 
The field trials began in portions of West Virginia, including U.S. 
Department of Agriculture Forest Service National Forest System lands.
    Beginning in 2012, WS expanded field trials into portions of New 
Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Vermont, and new areas of West Virginia, 
including National Forest System lands, in order to further assess the 
immunogenicity of ONRAB in raccoons and skunks for raccoon rabies virus 
variant.
    WS is now proposing to further expand ONRAB vaccine distribution to 
enhance rabies management in the United States to protect human and 
animal health and reduce social costs. The proposed expanded use of 
ONRAB is necessary as a higher level of population immunity in raccoons 
is desired in order to maximize the effectiveness of ORV programs, and 
the RABORAL V-RG vaccine has not produced sufficient levels of 
population immunity in skunks (primarily striped skunks) in the wild at 
the current dose.
    WS has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) in which we 
analyze the proposed expanded use of ONRAB vaccine-baits throughout the 
ORV distribution zone in Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, 
Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia in cooperation 
with the U.S. Forest Service. This EA will supersede the 2012 EA 
``Field Trial of an Experimental Rabies Vaccine, Human Adenovirus Type 
5 Vector in New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Vermont, and West Virginia'' 
and the subsequent supplemental EAs issued in 2013, 2015, 2017, and 
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 instructions for accessing 
Regulations.gov and information on the location and hours of the 
reading room). In addition, paper copies may be obtained by calling or 
writing to the individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    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 2nd day of July 2019.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-14536 Filed 7-8-19; 8:45 am]
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