This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

63959 

Vol. 78, No. 207 

Friday, October 25, 2013 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Research Service 

Notice of Intent To Grant Exclusive 

License 

AGENCY: Agricultural Research Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 

Agricultural Research Service, intends 

to grant to EPG Technologies, Inc. of 

Gainesville, Florida, an exclusive 

license to U.S. Patent No. 8,004,292, 

‘‘ELECTRICAL PENETRATION GRAPH 

SYSTEM,’’ issued on August 23, 2011. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before November 25, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments to: USDA, 

ARS, Office of Technology Transfer, 

5601 Sunnyside Avenue, Rm. 4–1174, 

Beltsville, Maryland 20705–5131. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: June 

Blalock of the Office of Technology 

Transfer at the Beltsville address given 

above; telephone: 301–504–5989. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Federal Government’s patent rights in 

this invention are assigned to the United 

States of America, as represented by the 

Secretary of Agriculture. It is in the 

public interest to so license this 

invention as EPG Technologies, Inc. of 

Gainesville, Florida has submitted a 

complete and sufficient application for 

a license. The prospective exclusive 

license will be royalty-bearing and will 

comply with the terms and conditions 

of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. The 

prospective exclusive license may be 

granted unless, within thirty (30) days 

from the date of this published Notice, 

the Agricultural Research Service 

receives written evidence and argument 

which establishes that the grant of the 

license would not be consistent with the 

requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 

CFR 404.7. 

Robert Griesbach, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2013–25169 Filed 10–24–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–03–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2013–0044] 

Environmental Impact Statement; 

Animal Carcass Management 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

environmental impact statement and 

proposed scope of study. 

SUMMARY: We are announcing to the 

public that the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service intends to prepare an 

environmental impact statement (EIS) to 

examine the potential environmental 

effects of animal carcass management 

options used throughout the United 

States. This notice identifies potential 

alternatives and environmental effects 

that will be examined in the EIS and 

requests that the public comment on 

these proposed alternatives and 

environmental effects and identify other 

issues that could be examined in the 

EIS. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before November 

25, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/

#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2013-0044- 

;0001. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2013–0044, 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-2013-0044 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. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions related to the carcass 

management program, contact Ms. Lori 

P. Miller, PE, Senior Staff Officer, 

National Center for Animal Health 

Emergency Management, VS, APHIS, 

4700 River Road Unit 41, Riverdale, MD 

20737; (301) 851–3512. For questions 

related to the EIS, contact Ms. Samantha 

Floyd, Environmental Protection 

Specialist, Environmental and Risk 

Analysis Services, PPD, APHIS, 4700 

River Road Unit 149, Riverdale, MD 

20737; (301) 851–3053. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Animal Health Protection Act (7 

U.S.C. 8301 et seq.) authorizes the 

Secretary of Agriculture to order the 

destruction or removal of animals to 

prevent the introduction and spread of 

livestock pests or diseases. Large 

numbers of animals and carcasses may 

need to be disposed of or otherwise 

managed during or after an animal 

health emergency. Examples of an 

animal health emergency include, but 

are not limited to, an outbreak of a 

foreign animal disease, a natural 

disaster, or the introduction of a 

chemical or radiological agent. As 

carcasses begin to degrade, bodily 

fluids, chemical and biological leachate 

components, and hazardous gases such 

as methane are released into the 

environment, potentially impacting the 

health and safety of surrounding 

humans, livestock, and wildlife. 

Therefore, the management of large 

numbers of carcasses during an animal 

health emergency must be timely, safe, 

biosecure, aesthetically acceptable, and 

environmentally responsible. 

Current Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS) regulations 

regarding carcass management, 

including those found in 9 CFR 53.4, are 

based on World Organization for 

Animal Health (OIE) recommendations 

and sound science. APHIS regulations 

specify that animals infected by or 

exposed to foot-and mouth disease, 

pleuropneumonia, rinderpest, and 

certain other communicable diseases of 

livestock or poultry are required to be 

disposed of by burial or burning, unless 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
63960 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 207 / Friday, October 25, 2013 / Notices 

otherwise specified by the APHIS 

Administrator. Traditionally, burial has 

involved placement of carcasses in 

unlined pits or trenches, and burning 

has involved open pyres (i.e., 

combustible heaps). APHIS may work in 

conjunction with States to manage 

animal carcasses during or after an 

animal health emergency. However, 

State regulations concerning carcass 

management vary, and Federal and State 

regulations are not always based on the 

most current scientific information with 

regard to impacts of such activities on 

the environment and public health. 

Environmental Impact Statement 

To examine the potential 

environmental effects of animal carcass 

management options used throughout 

the United States, APHIS is preparing 

an environmental impact statement 

(EIS). The EIS will analyze and compare 

all major and readily available mass 

carcass management options that may 

be utilized during an animal health 

emergency. APHIS is considering 

classifying mass carcass management as 

management of 50 tons or more of 

biomass per premises. In the EIS, we 

intend to compare unlined burial and 

open-air burning disposal methods with 

other available carcass management 

options. These may include composting 

(on- or off-site), rendering, landfills 

compliant with the Resource 

Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 

and other fixed facility options, such as 

incinerators compliant with the Clean 

Air Act, that could accommodate a large 

volume of carcasses over a short period 

of time. 

The findings of the EIS will be used 

for planning and decisionmaking and to 

inform the public about the potential 

environmental effects of currently 

available carcass management options. 

Additionally, when mass carcass 

management options are utilized, sitespecific environmental documents may 

be required. If such documents are 

needed, APHIS may use information 

presented and analyzed in the EIS, 

which will help APHIS to promptly 

fulfill its environmental compliance 

obligations when an emergency 

situation arises requiring immediate 

action. 

We are requesting public comment to 

help us identify or confirm potential 

alternatives and environmental effects, 

as well as any other issues, that could 

and should be examined in the EIS. The 

EIS will be 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). 

Alternatives 

We have identified the following 

alternatives for further examination in 

the EIS: 

Take no action. Under the no action 

alternative, existing APHIS regulations 

that recommend unlined burial and 

open-air burning will be used as the 

baseline against which alternative 

carcass management methods may be 

compared. This action does not involve 

changes to the current situation. 

Alternative action. Under the 

alternative action, APHIS is considering 

alternatives in addition to unlined 

burial and open-air burning as carcass 

management options. Alternative 

actions may include one or some 

combination of the following: 

Composting (on- or off-site), rendering, 

RCRA-compliant landfills, and other 

fixed facility options, such as 

incinerators compliant with the Clean 

Air Act. 

Environmental Effects for 

Consideration 

We have identified the following 

potential environmental effects for 

examination in the EIS. We are 

requesting that the public comment on 

them during the scoping period: 

• Effects on soil, air, and water 

quality. 

• Effects on humans: 

• Health and safety. 

• Agricultural lands. 

• Industries and the economy. 

• Public perception. 

• Cultural and historic resources. 

• Effects on wildlife populations, 

including effects on federally listed 

threatened and endangered species. 

• Effects on plant populations, 

including effects on federally listed 

threatened and endangered species. 

Comments that identify other issues 

or alternatives that could be considered 

for examination in the EIS would be 

especially helpful. All comments 

received during the scoping period will 

be carefully considered in developing 

the final scope of the EIS. Upon 

completion of the draft EIS, a notice 

announcing its availability and an 

opportunity to comment on it will be 

published in the Federal Register. 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 8301–8317; 7 CFR 

2.22, 2.80, and 371.4. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of 

October 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–25158 Filed 10–24–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

National Agricultural Statistics Service 

Notice of Intent To Request Revision 

and Extension of a Currently Approved 

Information Collection 

AGENCY: National Agricultural Statistics 

Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 

notice announces the intention of the 

National Agricultural Statistics Service 

(NASS) to request revision and 

extension of a currently approved 

information collection, the Agricultural 

Surveys Program. Revision to burden 

hours will be needed due to changes in 

the size of the target population, 

sampling design, and/or questionnaire 

length. 

DATES: Comments on this notice must be 

received by December 24, 2013 to be 

assured of consideration. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by docket number 0535–0213, 

by any of the following methods: 

• Email: ombofficer@nass.usda.gov. 

Include docket number above in the 

subject line of the message. 

• Fax: (202) 720–6396. 

• Mail: Mail any paper, disk, or CD– 

ROM submissions to: David Hancock, 

NASS Clearance Officer, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Room 5336 

South Building, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250– 

2024. 

• Hand Delivery/Courier: Hand 

deliver to: David Hancock, NASS 

Clearance Officer, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, Room 5336 South Building, 

1400 Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joseph T. Reilly, Associate 

Administrator, National Agricultural 

Statistics Service, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, (202) 720–4333. Copies of 

this information collection and related 

instructions can be obtained without 

charge from David Hancock, NASS 

Clearance Officer, at (202) 690–2388. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Agricultural Surveys Program. 

OMB Control Number: 0535–0213. 


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