68020 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 219 / Wednesday, November 13, 2013 / Notices 

Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services 

Gutter, Karis T.; Scuse, Michael; 

Taylor, Alexis; Vetter, Darci. 

Foreign Agricultural Service 

Foster, Christian; Karsting, Philip; 

Nuzum, Janet; Palmieri, Suzanne; 

Quick, Bryce; Riemenschneider, Robert; 

Sheikh, Patricia. 

Farm Service Agency 

Beyerhelm, Christopher; Dean, Telora 

T.; Diephouse, Gregory; Garcia, Juan M.; 

Gwinn, James; Harwood, Joy; Monahan, 

James; Rucker, Mark A.; Schmidt, John 

M.; Stephenson, Robert; Thompson, 

Candace; Trimm, Alan; Ward, Bruce 

Edward; Ware, Heidi Grace. 

Risk Management Agency 

Alston, Michael; Hand, Michael; 

Nelson, Leiann H.; Willis, Brandon C.; 

Witt, Timothy; Worth, Thomas W. 

Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services 

(FNCS) 

Arena-DeRosa, James; Arnette, 

Donald; Bailey Jr., Robin David; Barnes, 

Darlene; Burr, David Glenn; 

Christenson, Daniel Richa; Concannon, 

Kevin; Dombroski, Patricia; English, 

Timothy D.; Jackson, Yvette S.; Kane, 

Deborah J.; Ludwig, William; Mande, 

Jerold; Post, Robert C.; Rowe, Audrey; 

Shahin, Jessica; Thornton, Jane; 

Tribiano, Jeffrey. 

Rural Development (RD) 

Ferguson, Katherine; Kunesh, Patrice; 

O’Brien, Doug. 

Rural Business Service 

Hadjy, Pandor; Parker, Chadwick O. 

Rural Housing Service 

Allen, Joyce; Banegas, Ronald; Davis, 

Richard A.; Glendenning, Roger; 

Hannah, Thomas; Hooper, Bryan; 

Primrose, Edna; Ross, Robert H.; 

Salguero, Francisco. 

Rural Utilities Service 

Ackerman, Kenneth; Adams, Keith; 

Adelstein, Jonathan S.; Bojes, Gary; 

Elgohary, Nivin; Padalino, John C.; 

Ponti-Lazaruk, Jacqueline; Zufolo, 

Jessica. 

Natural Resources and Environment 

Blazer, Arthur; Bonnie, Robert Farrell; 

Harrell, Meryl; Mills, Ann C. 

Forest Service 

Agpaoa, Elizabeth; Atkinson, 

Kathleen; Bedwell, James; Blount, 

Emilee; Brown, Thomas C.; Bryant, 

Arthur; Bytnerowicz, Andrzej; 

Christiansen, Victoria; Cleaves, David 

A.; Cohen, Warren Bruce; Coleman, 

Angela V.; Connaughton, Kent P.; 

Cordell, Harold K.; Cullen, Daniel; 

DeCoster, Timothy P.; Dixon, Antione; 

Doudrick, Robert; Ferguson, Tony; 

Ferrell, David L.; Foster, George S.; 

Friend, Alexander L.; Grant, Gordon E.; 

Guldin, Richard; Gutman, Theodore H.; 

Hammel, Kenneth E.; Harbour, Thomas 

C.; Hubbard, James E.; Iverson, Louis R.; 

Jiron, Daniel J.; Joyner, Calvin N.; 

Krueger, Faye L.; Lago, Jacquelyn L.; 

Lemly, A. Dennis; Lepore, Mary Beth; 

Lugo, Ariel E.; Mangold, Robert D.; 

McGuire, Jennifer; Meade, Joe L.; 

Meinzer, Frederick C.; Mezainis, Valdis 

E.; Moore, Randy; Myers, Jr., Charles L.; 

Nash, Douglas R.; Pena, James M.; 

Pendleton, Beth G.; Peterson, David L.; 

Phipps, John E.; Rains, Michael T.; 

Raphael, Martin G.; Rasure, Nora B.; 

Reaves, Jimmy L.; Richmond, Charles S.; 

Ries, Paul F.; Rodriguez-Franco, Carlos; 

Ross, Robert J.; Sears, George A.; 

Shortle, Walter C.; Smith, Gregory C.; 

Spies, Thomas A.; Stanturf, John A.; 

Strong, Thelma J.; Thompson III, Frank 

R.; Tidwell, Thomas; Tooke, Tony; 

Vose, James M.; Wagner, Mary A.; Wear, 

David; Weldon, Leslie; West, Cynthia. 

Natural Resources Conservation 

Service 

Barry, Gayle N.; Boozer, Astor F.; 

Christensen, Thomas; Coleman, RayDeleon J.; Erickson, Terrell; Gelburd, 

Diane; Golden, Micheal; Herbert, Noller; 

Honeycutt, C. Wayne; Jordan, Leonard; 

Kramer, Anthony; Kunze, Stephen; 

Laur, Michele; Perry, Janet; Reed, Lesia; 

Salinas, Salvador; Sims, Richard; Smith, 

David W.; Suarez Oliva, Carlos; Weller, 

Jason; Wilkes, Homer L. 

Research, Education and Economics 

Abebe, Yeshimebet; Bartuska, Ann; 

Onwulata, Charles; Ramaswamy, Gita; 

Woteki, Catherine. 

Agricultural Research Service 

Ahuja, Lajpat R.; Allen, Lindsay; 

Arnold, Jeffrey G.; Baldus, Lisa; 

Brennan, Deborah; Brenner, Richard; 

Bretting, Peter K.; Chandler, Laurence; 

Cleveland, Thomas; Cregan, Perry B.; 

Erhan, Sevin; Fayer, Ronald; Gay, Cyril 

G.; Gibson, Paul; Gottwald, Timothy R.; 

Hackett, Kevin J.; Hammond, Andrew; 

Harris, Ellen; Hatfield, Jerry L.; 

Hefferan, Colien; Huber, Steven C.; 

Hunt, Patrick G.; Jackson, Thomas J.; 

Jacobs-Young, Chavonda; Jenkins, 

Johnie Norton; Kappes, Steven; King, Jr., 

Edgar; Klesius, Phillip Harry; Kochian, 

Leon V.; Kunickis, Sheryl; Lillehoj, 

Hyun S.; Lindsay, James A.; Liu, Simon; 

Loper, Joyce E.; Magill, Robert; 

Marshall, David; Matteri, Robert; 

Mattoo, Autar K.; McGuire, Michael; 

McMurtry, John; Nackman, Ronald J.; 

Ort, Donald R.; Pollak, Emil; Rango, 

Albert; Rexroad, Jr., Caird; Riley, Ronald 

T.; Sebesta, Paul; Shafer, Steven; 

Simmons, Mary W.; Smith, Timothy P.; 

Spence, Joseph; Suarez, David Lee; 

Swietlik, Dariusz; Teal, Peter; 

Upchurch, Dan; Vogel, Kenneth P.; 

Whalen, Maureen; Willett, Julious L.; 

Yates, Allison; Zhang, Howard. 

Economic Research Service 

Bianchi, Ronald; Bohman, Mary; 

Munisamy, Gopinath; Pompelli, Gregory 

K.; Variyam, Jayachandran N.; 

Weinberg, Marca J. 

National Agricultural Statistics Service 

Barnes, Kevin L.; Bass, Robert; 

Bennett, Norman; Clark, Cynthia; 

Hamer, Jr., Hubert; Harris, James Mark; 

Parsons, Joseph L.; Picanso, Robin; 

Prusacki, Joseph; Reilly, Joseph; 

Valivullah, Michael. 

National Institute of Food and 

Agriculture 

Broussard, Meryl; Desbois, Michel; 

Holland, Robert E.; Montgomery, 

Cynthia R.; Otto, Ralph; Qureshi, 

Muquarrab A.; Ramaswamy, Sony; 

Sheely, Deborah. 

DATES: Effective October 24, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

William Milton, Director, Office of 

Human Resources Management, 

telephone: (202) 690–2139, email: 

william.milton@dm.usda.gov.or Patricia 

Moore, Director, Executive Resources 

Management Division, telephone: (202) 

720–8629, email: patty.moore@

dm.usda.gov. 

Dated: November 1, 2013. 

Thomas J. Vilsack, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2013–27124 Filed 11–12–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–96–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2013–0048] 

Evaluation of Established Plant Pests 

for Action at Ports of Entry 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that we have been and are assessing 

certain plant pests that are present in 

the United States to determine whether 

we should take action to mitigate the 

risk posed by those pests when they are 

found in consignments of imported 


sroberts on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 219 / Wednesday, November 13, 2013 / Notices 68021 

goods at ports of entry into the United 

States. We have determined that it is no 

longer appropriate or necessary to take 

such action on some plant pests on 

which we had been taking action at 

ports of entry because we are not taking 

any regulatory action on those same 

pests when we find them in interstate 

movement, due to our scientific 

determination that we do not need to 

mitigate their pest risk. This process 

relieves restrictions that are no longer 

needed and ensures that actions taken 

on plant pests found in imported goods 

are consistent with the actions we take 

on those same pests when they appear 

in interstate commerce. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

David B. Lamb, Regulatory Policy 

Specialist, RPM, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 

River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 

20737–1231; (301) 851–2018; or Ms. 

Diane L. Schuble, National Coordinator 

for Official Control, Pest Detection and 

Emergency Programs, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 

River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 

20737–1237; (301) 851–2334. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the 

Plant Protection Act, as amended (PPA, 

7 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.), the Secretary of 

Agriculture is authorized to take such 

actions as may be necessary to prevent 

the introduction and spread of plant 

pests within the United States. The 

Secretary has delegated this 

responsibility to the Administrator of 

the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS). 

Pursuant to the PPA, when the 

Secretary considers it necessary to 

prevent the dissemination of a plant 

pest that is new to or not known to be 

widely prevalent or distributed within 

and throughout the United States, the 

Secretary may hold, seize, quarantine, 

treat, apply other remedial measures to, 

destroy, or otherwise dispose of any 

plant, plant pest, noxious weed, 

biological control organism, plant 

product, article, or means of conveyance 

that, among other things, is moving into 

the United States and that the Secretary 

has reason to believe is infested with a 

plant pest at the time of the movement. 

Under this PPA authority, consignments 

of imported articles are inspected at the 

port of entry to determine whether plant 

pests are associated with them and, if 

so, prescribe remedial measures as 

described in the Act. APHIS typically 

refers to prescribing measures to address 

the pest risk as ‘‘taking action’’ at the 

port of entry to prevent a plant pest 

from being introduced into or further 

disseminated within the United States. 

Pests that are subject to such actions are 

referred to as ‘‘actionable pests.’’ 

APHIS determines whether a pest is 

actionable based on its novelty and 

known prevalence or distribution 

within and throughout the United 

States, its potential harm to U.S. 

agricultural, environmental, or other 

resources, and the need to mitigate its 

pest risk, if any. However, after APHIS 

determines that a pest is actionable, 

circumstances may change, and it may 

no longer be necessary or be an effective 

use of resources to take action on the 

pest at ports of entry. For example, a 

bacterium could cause disease in a 

plant, but also could have become 

widespread in the United States, making 

any future control efforts ineffective and 

a waste of limited resources. We may 

lack effective control methods for an 

insect pest that is present in the United 

States, which would result in taking 

action that will likely not prevent the 

pest from causing damage but will 

continue to expend limited resources. 

Or, for example, a mealybug could 

damage certain plants, but additional 

experience with the pest may reveal that 

the damage is not of sufficient plant pest 

risk or economic importance to merit 

action at the port of entry. These 

circumstances often mean that no 

restrictions are placed on the interstate 

movement of articles infested with these 

pests when the articles are moved 

interstate. It is important to make the 

actions we take at the port of entry 

consistent with the actions taken in 

interstate movement, to maintain a 

uniform and consistent pest risk 

safeguarding and trade policy. 

To ensure that we are taking action at 

the ports of entry only when such action 

is warranted, APHIS has started to 

assess currently actionable plant pests 

that are present in the United States to 

determine which specific pests we 

should continue to take action on at the 

port of entry. The assessment is based 

on a number of factors, including: 

• The extent of the pest’s distribution 

in the United States; 

• The pest’s impacts on the economy 

(including its potential impacts on 

export markets), agricultural 

production, and the environment; 

• The scientific knowledge we have 

about the pest and the risk it poses; and 

• The availability and effectiveness of 

control or eradication tools for the pest. 

After we have completed our 

assessment, we share the information 

with the National Plant Board, a group 

of State plant health agencies. The 

States conduct their own reviews and 

provide additional information to help 

inform APHIS’ decisionmaking. For 

example, States may have additional 

information on the presence or 

distribution of a pest in their States, on 

the damage that pest causes, or potential 

control tools. 

After reviewing the information 

provided by the States, APHIS makes a 

decision on whether to continue taking 

action at ports of entry to mitigate the 

risk associated with a specific plant 

pest. Data leading to the decisions are 

documented in letters that are available 

on the Web at http://

www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/

plant_pest_info/frsmp/non-regpests.shtml. As of September 2013, 

APHIS has determined that 71 pests on 

which we had been taking action at 

ports of entry to address their risk no 

longer qualify under the PPA as 

requiring such action. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of 

November 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–27132 Filed 11–12–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2013–0007] 

Notice of Affirmation of Addition of a 

Treatment Schedule for Methyl 

Bromide Fumigation of Blueberries 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are affirming our earlier 

determination that it was necessary to 

immediately add to the Plant Protection 

and Quarantine Treatment Manual a 

treatment schedule for methyl bromide 

fumigation of blueberries for 

Mediterranean fruit fly and South 

American fruit fly. In a previous notice, 

we made available to the public for 

review and comment a treatment 

evaluation document that described the 

new treatment schedule and explained 

why we have determined that it is 

effective at neutralizing these fruit flies. 

DATES: Effective Date: Effective on 

November 13, 2013, we are affirming the 

addition to the Plant Protection and 

Quarantine Treatment Manual of the 

treatment described in the notice 

published at 78 FR 36507–36508 on 

June 18, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Inder P.S. Gadh, Senior Risk Manager– 

Treatments, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737; 

(301) 851–2018. 


sroberts on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES