[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 12 (Thursday, January 21, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Page 6289]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01124]


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 Notices
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 12 / Thursday, January 21, 2021 / 
Notices  

[[Page 6289]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2020-0035]


Notice of Availability of an Environmental Assessment for Release 
of Bikasha collaris and Gadirtha fusca for Biological Control of 
Chinese Tallow

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 the insects Bikasha collaris and Gadirtha 
fusca for biological control of Chinese tallow tree (Triadica sebifera) 
in the contiguous United States. Based on the environmental assessment 
and other relevant data, we have reached a preliminary determination 
that the release of this control agent 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 
February 22, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2020-0035.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2020-0035, 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-2020-
0035 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1620 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; (301) 851-2327; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Chinese tallow, native to China, is one of 
the most aggressive and widespread invasive weeds in the Southeastern 
United States; it grows as a large shrub, or a medium-height but large 
diameter tree, up to 60 feet tall and 3 feet in diameter with dark 
green bark and hairless leaves. Since its introduction, the weed has 
been reported primarily in 10 States including North Carolina, South 
Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, 
Texas, and California. Tallow invasions alter species composition, 
community structure, and ecosystem processes in many native habitats.
    Bikasha collaris is a small beetle. Adults are about 2 millimeters 
long and feed on tallow leaves, young stems, and even woody stems. In 
nature, females lay eggs on the soil surface at the base of plants. 
Larvae hatch and tunnel into the ground and feed on the roots of tallow 
plants. Gadirtha fusca is a small moth with adults about 2 centimeters 
long. Eggs are usually laid individually on leaves, and early and late 
instar larvae feed externally on leaves.
    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 Insects Bikasha 
collaris (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) and Gadirtha fusca (Lepidoptera: 
Nolidae) for Classical Biological Control of Chinese Tallow Tree in the 
Contiguous United States'' (April 2020). 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 13th day of January 2021.
Mark Davidson,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-01124 Filed 1-19-21; 8:45 am]
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