Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 44 / Wednesday, March 6, 2013 / Notices 14509 

1To view the notice, EA, and FONSI go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0061. 

1To view the notice, EA, and FONSI go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2012–0060. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service has prepared an 

environmental assessment and finding 

of no significant impact relative to the 

release of Aphelinus glycinis for the 

biological control of soybean aphid, 

Aphis glycines, in the continental 

United States. Based on its finding of no 

significant impact, the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service has 

determined that an environmental 

impact statement need not be prepared. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Shirley A. Wager-Page, Chief, Pest 

Permitting Branch, Registration, 

Identification, Permitting, and Plant 

Safeguarding, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737– 

1236; (301) 851–2323. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The soybean aphid, Aphis glycinis, 

which is native to Asia, was found in 

North America in 2000 and has since 

become a major pest in America. It 

infested 42 million acres alone in 2003, 

resulting in decreased soybean yields 

and greatly increased control costs. The 

soybean aphid has invaded most 

soybean production regions in North 

America, including numerous U.S. 

States and three Canadian Provinces. 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS) is proposing 

to issue permits for the field release of 

the insect Aphelinus glycinis to reduce 

the severity of soybean damage from 

infestations of soybean aphid in the 

United States. Permitting the release of 

this parasite species is necessary to 

determine its impact on soybean aphid 

populations and its ability to survive in 

the target area. 

On August 3, 2012, we published in 

the Federal Register (77 FR 46373, 

Docket No. APHIS–2012–0061) a 

notice 1 in which we announced the 

availability, for public review and 

comment, of an environmental 

assessment (EA) that examined the 

potential environmental impacts 

associated with the proposed release of 

this biological control agent into the 

continental United States. 

We solicited comments on the EA for 

30 days ending September 4, 2012. We 

received one comment, from a private 

citizen. The commenter opposed the 

proposed action but did not offer a 

rationale or any information apart from 

that opposition. 

In this document, we are advising the 

public of our finding of no significant 

impact (FONSI) regarding the release of 

Aphelinus glycinis into the continental 

United States for use as a biological 

control agent to reduce the severity of 

soybean aphid infestations. The finding, 

which is based on the EA, reflects our 

determination that release of this 

biological control agent will not have a 

significant impact on the quality of the 

human environment. 

The EA and FONSI may be viewed on 

the Regulations.gov Web site (see 

footnote 1). Copies of the EA and FONSI 

are also available for public inspection 

at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 

14th Street and Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. 

and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except holidays. Persons wishing to 

inspect copies are requested to call 

ahead on (202) 799–7039 to facilitate 

entry into the reading room. In addition, 

copies may be obtained by calling or 

writing to the individual listed under 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 

The EA and FONSI have 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 1); and (4) APHIS’ NEPA 

Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 

372). 

Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of 

February 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–05140 Filed 3–5–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0060] 

Availability of an Environmental 

Assessment and Finding of No 

Significant Impact for a Biological 

Control Agent for Hemlock Woolly 

Adelgid 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service has prepared an 

environmental assessment and finding 

of no significant impact relative to the 

release of Scymnus coniferarum to 

control hemlock woolly adelgid. Based 

on its finding of no significant impact, 

the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service has determined that an 

environmental impact statement need 

not be prepared. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Shirley A. Wager-Page, Chief, Pest 

Permitting Branch, Registration, 

Identification, Permitting, and Plant 

Safeguarding, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737– 

1236; (301) 851–2323. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS) is proposing 

to issue permits for the release of 

Scymnus coniferarum, a native 

predaceous beetle from the western 

United States, into the eastern United 

States for use as a biological control 

agent to reduce the severity of hemlock 

woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) 

infestations on hemlock. 

Hemlock woolly adelgid was 

accidentally introduced to the eastern 

United States from Asia. Although 

native to the western United States, in 

the eastern United States, hemlock 

woolly adelgid is a destructive pest of 

the eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), 

where it causes needle loss, abortion of 

buds, and the eventual death of infested 

trees. 

On August 3, 2012, we published in 

the Federal Register (77 FR 46373– 

46374, Docket No. APHIS–2012–0060) a 

notice 1 in which we announced the 

availability, for public review and 

comment, of an environmental 

assessment (EA) that examined the 

potential environmental impacts 

associated with the proposed release of 

this biological control agent into the 

eastern United States. 

We solicited comments on the EA for 

30 days ending September 4, 2012. We 

received 10 comments by that date. 

Nine of the commenters were 

supportive of the proposed action. The 

remaining commenter opposed the 

proposed action but did not offer a 

rationale or any information apart from 

that opposition. 

In this document, we are advising the 

public of our finding of no significant 

impact (FONSI) regarding the release of 

S. coniferarum into the eastern United 

States for use as a biological control 

agent to reduce the severity of hemlock 

woolly adelgid infestations. The finding, 

which is based on the EA, reflects our 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
14510 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 44 / Wednesday, March 6, 2013 / Notices 

determination that release of this 

biological control agent will not have a 

significant impact on the quality of the 

human environment. 

The EA and FONSI may be viewed on 

the Regulations.gov Web site (see 

footnote 1). Copies of the EA and FONSI 

are also available for public inspection 

at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 

14th Street and Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. 

and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except holidays. Persons wishing to 

inspect copies are requested to call 

ahead on (202) 799–7039 to facilitate 

entry into the reading room. In addition, 

copies may be obtained by calling or 

writing to the individual listed under 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 

The EA and FONSI have 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 28th day of 

February 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–05141 Filed 3–5–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0077] 

Notice of Availability of New 

Guidelines for Pest Risk Assessments 

of Imported Fruits and Vegetables 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS) has 

prepared a document that describes the 

revised methodology that APHIS will 

use to conduct plant health pest risk 

assessments for imported fruit and 

vegetable commodities. These new 

guidelines are necessary to incorporate 

advancements in pest risk assessment 

methods, provide clearer and more 

transparent analyses, and streamline the 

market access analysis process. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Meredith Jones, Senior Regulatory 

Policy Specialist, Regulatory 

Coordination and Compliance, PPQ, 

APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 156, 

Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851–2289. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On October 17, 2000, under the 

authority of the Plant Protection Act (7 

U.S.C. 7701 et seq.), the Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

began using a specific set of guidelines 

to conduct pathway-initiated, 

qualitative pest risk assessments (PRAs) 

for imports of fruits and vegetables. A 

PRA is defined by the International 

Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), of 

which the United States is a member, as 

an ‘‘evaluation of the probability of the 

introduction and spread of a pest and 

the magnitude of the associated 

potential economic consequences.’’ 

Following the characterization of the 

risk of the pest in the PRA, APHIS 

produces a risk management document 

to determine appropriate pest risk 

mitigation methods. 

APHIS has determined that it is 

necessary to update the previous 

guidelines, which were developed over 

10 years ago, in order to provide a more 

streamlined and efficient process for 

developing PRAs. Revising the PRA 

guidelines allows APHIS to incorporate 

advancements in PRA methods, provide 

a clearer, more transparent, and more 

logical order of progression of the 

assessment, and more closely align the 

assessments to the IPPC’s international 

standards for phytosanitary measures. 

The new guidelines provide a more 

technically correct method of assessing 

risk by recognizing that the likelihood of 

pest introduction is multiplicative 

rather than additive; i.e., if one 

necessary step for the introduction of a 

pest has a low likelihood of occurring, 

there is an overall low likelihood of 

introduction of the pest, regardless of 

the likelihood of other steps. The new 

guidelines also address uncertainty, a 

principle not explicitly addressed in the 

previous guidelines. In addition, 

because the new guidelines are designed 

to make the PRA drafting process more 

efficient, we expect the time required to 

produce the PRAs and respond to 

market access requests to decrease. 

The PRA guidelines document, 

entitled ‘‘Guidelines for Plant Pest Risk 

Assessment of Imported Fruit & 

Vegetable Commodities,’’ may be 

viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site 

at http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0077 or 

in our 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) 799–7039 before 

coming. In addition, copies may be 

obtained by calling or writing to the 

individual listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, and 

7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 

2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of 

February 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–05138 Filed 3–5–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0064] 

Notice of Availability of a Treatment 

Evaluation Document and an 

Environmental Assessment for 

Pesticide Use in the Imported Fire Ant 

Program 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of availability and 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public 

that we have determined that it is 

necessary to add and revise certain 

treatment schedules for the Imported 

Fire Ant Program in the Plant Protection 

and Quarantine Treatment Manual. 

Thus, we have prepared a treatment 

evaluation document that discusses the 

existing treatment schedules, describes 

the new treatment schedules, and 

explains why these changes are 

necessary. In addition, an 

environmental assessment has been 

prepared by the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service relative to 

pesticide use in the new and revised 

treatments in the imported fire ant 

program. The environmental assessment 

documents our review and analysis of 

environmental impacts associated with 

proposed new pesticides and new uses 

for previously approved pesticides. We 

are making this treatment evaluation 

document and environmental 

assessment available to the public for 

review and comment. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before May 6, 

2013. 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES