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,

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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

42225 

Vol. 74, No. 161 

Friday, August 21, 2009 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2008–0096] 

National Aquatic Animal Health Plan 

for the United States; Notice of 

Availability 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA; National 

Marine Fisheries Service, National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration, DOC; and Fish and 

Wildlife Service, DOI. 

ACTION: Notice of availability and 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that a National Aquatic Animal Health 

Plan (NAAHP) for the United States is 

being made available for public review 

and comment. The NAAHP was 

developed by a Task Force led by the 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS) of the U.S. Department 

Agriculture, the Fish and Wildlife 

Service (FWS) of the U.S. Department of 

the Interior, and the National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) of the 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration of the U.S. Department 

of Commerce. It is anticipated that this 

plan will provide a framework for how 

APHIS, FWS, and NMFS should 

develop programs for diseases that affect 

the health of aquatic animals such as 

finfish, crustaceans, and mollusks. 

DATES: APHIS, FWS, and NMFS will 

consider all comments received on or 

before October 20, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/ 

component/ 

main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS2008-0096 to submit or view comments 

and to view supporting and related 

materials available electronically. All 

comments received are a part of the 

public record and will generally be 

posted to http://www.regulations.gov 

without change. All personal identifying 

information (for example, name, 

address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by 

the commenter may be publicly 

accessible. Do not submit confidential 

business information or otherwise 

sensitive or protected information. The 

agency will accept anonymous 

comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in the required 

fields, if you wish to remain 

anonymous). You may submit 

attachments to electronic comments in 

Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 

Adobe PDF file formats only. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Please send two copies of your comment 

to Docket No. APHIS–2008–0096, 

Regulatory Analysis and Development, 

PPD, APHIS, Station 3A–03.8, 4700 

River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 

20737–1238. Please state that your 

comment refers to Docket No. APHIS 

2008–0096. 

Reading Room: You may read any 

comments that we receive on the 

National Aquatic Animal Health Plan in 

the APHIS reading room. The reading 

room 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) 690–2817 before 

coming. 

Other Information: Additional 

information about APHIS and its 

programs is available on the Internet at 

http://www.aphis.usda.gov. Additional 

information about FWS is available on 

the Internet at http://www.fws.gov. 

Additional information about the NOAA 

Aquaculture Program is available on the 

Internet at http://aquaculture.noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

APHIS: Dr. P. Gary Egrie, Veterinary 

Medical Officer, Aquaculture, Swine, 

Equine, and Poultry Health Programs, 

VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 46, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1231; (301) 

734–0695. 

NMFS: Mr. Kevin Amos, National 

Aquatic Animal Health Coordinator, 

NOAA Aquaculture Program, 1315 

East-West Hwy., SSMC#3 Rm. 13137, 

Silver Spring, MD 20910; (360) 709– 

9001. 

FWS: Ray Brunson, Project Leader, 

FWS, Olympia Fish Health Center, 

3859 Martin Way E, Suite 101, 

Olympia, WA 98506; 360–753–9046. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Aquaculture, which includes the 

managed production of aquatic animals, 

is practiced throughout the United 

States and its territories by private, 

public, and tribal entities. Aquaculture 

continues to grow as a major 

agribusiness enterprise. The production 

of aquatic animals is a critical economic 

and environmental activity that 

provides a source of healthy food, 

employment, recreation, and 

supplementation of wild fishery stocks 

for harvest by commercial and tribal 

harvesters, as well as protection and 

restoration of aquatic animals that face 

extinction. 

Disease has the potential to pose a 

great threat to the success of 

aquaculture. Developing and 

implementing a national aquatic animal 

health plan has become urgent for two 

reasons: The growing need to protect 

our domestic commerce and resources, 

and the advent of new health 

regulations by foreign governments that 

restrict the importation of live and 

processed aquatic animals from the 

United States. 

In recent years, outbreaks of 

infectious salmon anemia and spring 

viremia of carp in private U.S. 

aquaculture operations resulted in 

losses of over $10 million. Also 

recently, a new strain of viral 

hemorrhagic septicemia has affected 

several wild populations of fish in the 

Great Lakes region of the United States. 

If the United States maintains a limited 

and disparate supporting infrastructure 

to diagnose, report, educate, manage, 

and develop surveillance and control 

programs, the presence of these or the 

discovery of other aquatic animal 

pathogens in this country could lead to 

restriction or elimination of 

international commerce in some aquatic 

animals for the United States. 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
42226 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 161 / Friday, August 21, 2009 / Notices 

The National Aquatic Animal Health 

Plan (NAAHP) 

In 2001, the Joint Subcommittee on 

Aquaculture (JSA), under the auspices 

of the Executive Office of the President, 

Office of Science and Technology 

Policy, commissioned a national task 

force to develop a national health plan 

for aquatic animals. Three Federal 

Departments with primary 

responsibility for aquatic animal health 

are leading the task force—the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA), the 

U.S. Department of Commerce 

(Commerce), and the U.S. Department of 

the Interior (DOI). USDA’s Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

protects the health of U.S. agriculture, 

thereby improving agricultural 

productivity and competiveness and 

contributing to the national economy 

and public health. Commerce’s National 

Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is 

dedicated to the stewardship of living 

marine resources through science-based 

conservation and management, and the 

promotion of healthy ecosystems. DOI’s 

Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) works 

with others to conserve, protect, and 

enhance fish, wildlife, and plants, and 

their habitats for the continuing benefit 

of the American people. The FWS’ 

Aquatic Animal Health Program strives 

to conserve our nation’s fisheries and 

aquatic resources. 

Once the JSA commissioned the task 

force to develop the NAAHP, the task 

force recognized that the first outreach 

activity would be to bring together all 

interested parties, inform them of the 

intent to develop a plan, and request 

their recommendations regarding 

content. The recommendations from 

stakeholders shaped the mission and the 

objectives for the NAAHP, which was 

again vetted by interested parties and 

reviewed by the JSA itself. The mission 

of the NAAHP is to: 

• Facilitate the legal movement of all 

aquatic animals, their eggs, and their 

products in interstate and international 

commerce; 

• Protect the health and thereby 

improve the quality and productivity of 

farmed and wild aquatic animals; 

• Ensure the availability of 

diagnostic, inspection, and certification 

services; and 

• Minimize the impacts of diseases 

when they occur in farmed or wild 

aquatic animals. 

Following approval of the mission of 

the NAAHP by the JSA, the task force 

began soliciting information for the 

contents of the chapters. Technical 

group meetings were held, at which 

information was solicited from industry, 

State, tribal, Federal and academic 

partners. A total of 12 group meetings 

were held between January 2003 and 

November 2006. Many of the technical 

groups focused on species-specific 

disease issues with regard to 

surveillance and disease management. 

The task force’s technical team used 

information from these groups and from 

other meetings to draft the NAAHP’s 

chapters. 

The goal of the NAAHP is to provide 

recommendations to industry, States, 

tribes, Federal agencies, and other 

stakeholders to meet the mission of the 

Plan. These recommendations are not 

necessarily in support of an overarching 

regulatory program to be implemented 

by the Federal Government. Rather, the 

recommendations relate to activities for 

consideration by all stakeholders to 

meet the mission of the Plan. 

Four principles have been used by the 

task force to develop the NAAHP. They 

are: 

• Construct the Plan using 

established scientific principles of fish 

health management; 

• Develop the Plan in an open and 

visible process in which stakeholders 

have opportunities to provide 

information; 

• Recognize that limited resources are 

available; therefore the plan must be 

affordable, make sense to stakeholders, 

and be capable of implementation; and 

• Develop standards that are 

consistent with World Trade 

Organization and World Organization 

for Animal Health (OIE) guidelines and, 

to the extent possible, are consistent 

with Federal, State, and tribal 

regulations already in existence in the 

United States. 

Recommendations and Implementation 

While the NAAHP is not a regulation, 

it provides general principles and 

guidelines for how the U.S. Federal 

Agencies with jurisdiction over aquatic 

animal health (APHIS, NMFS, and FWS) 

should take action to protect our farmed 

and wild resources, facilitate safe 

commerce, and make available 

laboratory testing, training, and other 

programs as needed to implement the 

NAAHP. The key recommendations 

made by the task force are related to the 

following areas: 

• Prevention of the introduction or 

spread of program aquatic animal 

pathogens (PAAPs); 

• Response to PAAPs and reportable 

aquatic animal pathogens (RAAPs); 

• Health certification; 

• Surveillance schemes for PAAPs 

and RAAPs; 

• Laboratories, standardized testing, 

quality testing, and approved personnel; 

and 

• Education and training. 

In addition to the recommendation 

areas listed, activities addressed in the 

NAAHP include the following: 

Definition of pathogens of national 

concern; creation and implementation 

of disease management zones; 

identification of priority areas for 

research and development in aquatic 

animal health, including identification 

of existing funding structures and 

recommendations for leveraging 

resources; description of strategies for 

continued outreach and awareness 

regarding national aquatic animal health 

strategies and the NAAHP; and 

implementation of the NAAHP. 

Due to limited resources, the NAAHP 

must be developed based on the 

priorities and recommendations 

identified within the Plan, and 

implementation of these priorities will 

be contingent upon funding. However, 

continued stakeholder consultation is 

necessary to ensure that the priorities 

and recommendations in the Plan are 

updated if necessary. Therefore, the 

establishment of a National Advisory 

Committee for Aquatic Animal Health is 

of utmost importance to a successful 

NAAHP. 

Such a committee could be 

established as a permanent advisory 

committee—chartered under the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act (FACA)—to 

the Federal agencies responsible for 

implementing programs related to the 

NAAHP. Alternatively, it could be 

created as a subcommittee of a currently 

established FACA committee, such as 

the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on 

Foreign Animal and Poultry Diseases 

within the USDA. In either case, the 

Advisory Committee structure can 

provide information to agencies 

regarding issues of importance and, in 

an environment of fiscal conservation, 

assist the Federal agencies in allocating 

resources for aquatic animal health 

issues appropriately. Such an advisory 

committee should be large enough to 

ensure broad stakeholder 

representation, but small enough to 

ensure its effectiveness. 

The next step is for the Federal 

agencies to take the recommendations 

and suggested actions in the Plan and 

make them into policies, guidelines, and 

if appropriate, regulations. As with the 

development of the NAAHP, 

implementation must be a collaborative 

process that includes information from 

States, tribes, industry, and other 

stakeholders, and the timeframe for 

certain activities may be influenced by 

available funding. 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 161 / Friday, August 21, 2009 / Notices 42227 

Accessing and Commenting on the 

NAAHP 

We are making the NAAHP dated 

October 2008 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 NAAHP may be viewed on the 

Federal eRulemaking Web site (see 

ADDRESSES above for instructions for 

accessing Regulations.gov). You may 

request paper copies of the draft 

document by contacting the persons 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. Please refer to the title of the 

draft document when requesting copies. 

The NAAHP may also be viewed at 

APHIS’ Web site at http:// 

www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/ 

animal_dis_spec/aquaculture/, at FWS’ 

Web site at http://www.fws.gov/ 

fisheries/, or at NOAA’s aquaculture 

Web site at http://aquaculture.noaa.gov. 

The NAAHP is also available for review 

in the APHIS reading room. 

(Information on the location and hours 

of the APHIS reading room is listed 

under the heading ADDRESSES at the 

beginning of this notice.) 

Dated: August 11, 2009. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

Daniel M. Ashe, 

Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Dated: August 11, 2009. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–19702 Filed 8–20–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Rural Utilities Service 

Basin Electric Power Cooperative; 

Notice of Finding of No Significant 

Impact 

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of Finding of No 

Significant Impact. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) has 

made a Finding of No Significant Impact 

(FONSI) with respect to a request from 

Basin Electric Power Cooperative for 

assistance to finance the construction, 

operation, and maintenance of a 115.5 

MW wind-powered electric generating 

facility (the Proposal) in Ward County, 

North Dakota. 

ADDRESSES: The FONSI is available for 

public review at the USDA Rural 

Utilities Service’s Web site—http:// 

www.usda.gov/rus/water/ees/ea.htm or 

at 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., 

Room 2244, Stop 1571, Washington, DC 

20250–1571; and at Basin’s 

headquarters office located at 1717 East 

Interstate Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58503– 

0564. 

CONTACTS: To obtain copies of the 

FONSI or for further information, 

contact Dennis Rankin, Environmental 

Protection Specialist, USDA, Rural 

Utilities Service, 1400 Independence 

Avenue, SW., Stop 1571 Washington, 

DC 20250–1571, Telephone: (202) 720– 

1953 or e-mail: 

dennis.rankin@wdc.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Basin 

Electric proposes to construct a new 

115.5 MW wind generation facility in 

north-central North Dakota. The project 

will include seventy-seven (77) 1.5 MW 

wind turbine generators and be located 

approximately 15 miles south of Minot, 

North Dakota. Tetra Tech, an 

environmental consulting firm, 

prepared an Environmental Report for 

RUS. RUS conducted an independent 

evaluation of the Environmental Report 

and agreed that it accurately assessed 

the impacts of the Proposal. RUS 

accepted the document as its 

Environmental Assessment and 

published the document for a 30-day 

public comment period. The applicant 

is responsible for obtaining all permits 

required to construct the Proposal. 

Pursuant to 36 CFR 800.4(d)(1) of the 

regulations (36 CFR Part 800) 

implementing Section 106 of the 

National Historic Preservation Act 

(NHPA), 16 U.S.C. 470f, RUS made a 

finding that this Proposal will not affect 

historic properties. RUS received no 

objection to this finding of effect from 

the North Dakota State Historic 

Preservation Office or other consulting 

parties. RUS has determined this 

finding of no historic properties affected 

made pursuant to Section 106 of NHPA. 

In accordance with the National 

Environmental Policy Act, as amended 

(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on 

Environmental Quality Regulations (40 

CFR 1500–1508), and RUS’ 

Environmental Policies and Procedures 

(7 CFR Part 1794), RUS has determined 

that the environmental impacts of the 

Proposal have been adequately 

addressed and that no significant 

impacts to the quality of the human 

environment would result from the 

construction and operation of the 

Proposal. Any final action by RUS 

related to the Proposal will be subject 

to, and contingent upon, compliance 

with all relevant federal and state 

environmental laws and regulations. 

Since RUS’ action will not result in 

significant impacts to the quality of the 

human environment, the preparation of 

an Environmental Impact Statement 

related to the proposed project is not 

necessary. 

Dated: August 14, 2009. 

Nivin Elgohary, 

Acting Assistant Administrator—Electric, 

Rural Utilities Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–20076 Filed 8–20–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Natural Resources Conservation 

Service 

Notice of Meeting of the Agricultural 

Air Quality Task Force 

AGENCY: Natural Resources 

Conservation Service, United States 

Department of Agriculture. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Air Quality 

Task Force (AAQTF) will meet to 

continue discussions on air quality 

issues relating to agriculture. 

DATES: The meeting will convene at 8 

a.m. on Wednesday through Friday, 

September 16–18, 2009, and conclude at 

5 p.m. on Wednesday, 5 p.m. on 

Thursday, and 12 noon on Friday, 

respectively. A public comment period 

will be held on Thursday, September 

17, 2009. Individuals making oral 

presentations should register at the 

meeting site and bring 50 copies of 

materials they would like distributed. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Embassy Suites on the River located 

at 101 East Locust Street, Des Moines, 

Iowa 50309; Telephone: (515) 244–1700. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michele Laur, Designated Federal 

Official, Department of Agriculture, 

Natural Resources Conservation Service, 

1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 

6165 South Building, Washington, DC 

20013; Telephone: (202) 720–1858; or email: michele.laur@wdc.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice of 

this meeting is given under the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App. 

2. Additional information concerning 

AAQTF may be viewed on the World 

Wide Web at: http:// 

www.airquality.nrcs.usda.gov/AAQTF/. 

Agenda 

Wednesday, September 16, 2009 

A. Welcome to Iowa 

B. Discussion of Iowa Air Quality Issues 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES