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

39852

Vol. 65, No. 125

Wednesday, June 28, 2000

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[TB–00–12]

Burley Tobacco Advisory Committee—

Notice of Committee Renewal

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice of committee renewal.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

the Secretary of Agriculture has

renewed the Burley Tobacco Advisory

Committee for an additional period of 2

years.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

P. Duncan III, Deputy Administrator,

Tobacco Programs, AMS, USDA, 300

12th Street, S.W., Stop 0280, Room 502

Annex Building, P.O. Box 96456,

Washington, D.C. 20090–6456, (202)

205–0567.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Committee, which reports to the

Secretary through the Under Secretary

for Marketing and Regulatory Programs,

recommends opening dates and selling

schedules for the burley marketing area

which aid the Secretary in making an

equitable apportionment and

assignment of tobacco inspectors. The

Committee consists of 39 members; 21

producer representatives, 10 warehouse

representatives, and 8 buyer

representatives, representing all

segments of the burley tobacco industry

and meets at the call of the Secretary.

The Secretary has determined that

renewal of this Committee is in the

public interest.

To ensure that recommendations of

the Committee take into account the

needs of diverse groups served by the

Department, membership should

include, to the extent practicable,

persons with demonstrated ability to

represent minorities, women, and

persons with disabilities.

This notice is given in compliance

with the Federal Advisory Committee

Act (5 U.S.C. App.).

Dated: June 22, 2000.

Paul W. Fiddick,

Assistant Secretary for Administration.

[FR Doc. 00–16372 Filed 6–27–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

[Docket No. 99–073–2]

Papaya Mealybug; Availability of a

Supplement to an Environmental

Assessment

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: We are advising the public

that we have prepared a supplement to

an October 1999 environmental

assessment that was prepared by the

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service relative to the suppression of

the papaya mealybug, Paracoccus

marginatus Williams (Homoptera:

Pseudococcidae). The supplement

examines the environmental release of

nonindigenous wasps of the genus

Pseudaphycus for use as biological

control agents to suppress the papaya

mealybug. The supplement has been

prepared to provide the public with

documentation of APHIS’ review and

analysis of the environmental impact

and plant pest risk associated with

releasing these biological control agents

into the environment.

DATES: We invite you to comment on

this docket. We will consider all

comments that we receive by July 28,

2000.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comment

and three copies to: Docket No. 99–073–

2, Regulatory Analysis and

Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03,

4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale,

MD 20737–1238.

Please state that your comment refers

to Docket No. 99–073–2.

You may read any comment that we

receive on this docket and review copies

of the original environmental

assessment and the supplement 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) 690–2817 before

coming.

APHIS documents published in the

Federal Register, and related

information, including the names of

organizations and individuals who have

commented on APHIS dockets, are

available on the Internet at http://

www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/

webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

Dale E. Meyerdirk, Supervisory

Agriculturist, Pink Hibiscus Mealybug

Program, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road

Unit 135, Riverdale, MD 20737–1236;

(301) 734–5667. For copies of the

supplement and the October 1999

environmental assessment, write to Dr.

Meyerdirk at the same address. Please

refer to the title of the environmental

assessment when ordering copies.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

papaya mealybug, Paracoccus

marginatus Williams (Homoptera:

Pseudococcidae), can cause serious

damage to numerous agricultural

products, including papayas, hibiscus,

citrus, cotton, and avocados, which can

result in significant economic losses.

Papaya mealybug exists in Puerto Rico

and the U.S. Virgin Islands, has recently

been found in a few locations in Florida,

and has been intercepted in Texas and

California. From Florida, papaya

mealybug could spread rapidly through

the Gulf States and eventually on to

Texas and California. The limits of its

spread northward cannot be accurately

predicted, but certain greenhouse crops

would be at risk, even in cold regions.

On October 19, 1999, we published in

the Federal Register (64 FR 56305–

56306, Docket No. 99–073–1) a notice

announcing the availability of an

environmental assessment titled

‘‘Control of Papaya Mealybug,

Paracoccus marginatus (Homoptera:

Pseudococcidae)’’ (October 1999). In

that environmental assessment, we

discussed our review and analysis of the

environmental impact and plant pest

risk associated with the release into the

environment of three genera of

nonindigenous wasps (Anagyrus,

Apoanagyrus, and Acerophagus) as part

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 125 / Wednesday, June 28, 2000 / Notices 39853

of a biological control project to

suppress papaya mealybug.

Since the publication of our October

1999 notice, a fourth genus of

nonindigenous wasp—Pseudaphycus

(Hymenoptera: Encrytidae)—that attacks

the papaya mealybug has been

identified. Research conducted in

quarantine has shown Pseudaphycus

spp. wasps to be a primary parasite of

papaya mealybug, and this genus is only

known to attack species of mealybug.

Thus, a request has been made to the

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service (APHIS) for the release of

Pseudaphycus spp. wasps into the

environment for the suppression of

papaya mealybug infestations

throughout the United States.

The Pseudaphycus spp. wasps will be

imported from Mexico into U.S.

Department of Agriculture (USDA)-

certified insect quarantine facilities at

the Beneficial Insects Introduction

Research Laboratory (BIIRL) in Newark,

DE. At BIIRL, species identifications

would be confirmed by USDA and State

taxonomists, and undesirable

organisms, such as hyperparasites,

would be screened out and properly

eliminated. Laboratory colonies would

be established by APHIS and State

cooperators. The wasps would then be

released by APHIS and State

cooperators in areas invaded by the

papaya mealybug. Such areas include

the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and

Florida, where the papaya mealybug is

now present. The papaya mealybug may

also spread to other States due to the

presence of hosts and favorable habitats.

These areas include Alabama, Arizona,

Arkansas, California, Delaware, Georgia,

Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland,

Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, New

Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma,

South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and

Virginia. If the papaya mealybug does

spread to these areas, APHIS and State

cooperators will release the wasps in the

affected areas also.

We expect that these stingless wasps

would become established and

reproduce naturally without further

human intervention.

If APHIS does release Pseudaphycus

spp. wasps, the release of these wasps

will complement our previous releases

of Anagyrus, Apoanagyrus, and

Acerophagus spp. wasps, which were

the first exotic biological control agents

approved for release against papaya

mealybug in the United States.

To document APHIS’ review and

analysis of the environmental impact

and plant pest risk associated with

releasing Pseudaphycus spp. wasps into

the environment as biological control

agents, we have prepared a supplement

to our October 1999 environmental

assessment that examined the release

into the environment of Anagyrus,

Apoanagyrus, and Acerophagus spp.

wasps. We are making the supplement

to that environmental assessment

available to the public for review and

comment.

The supplement to our October 1999

environmental assessment 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 22nd day of

June 2000.

Bobby R. Acord,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 00–16312 Filed 6–27–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

[Docket No. 00–058–1]

Public Meetings; Pine Shoot Beetle

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meetings and

request for comments.

SUMMARY: The Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service plans to host three

public meetings to discuss issues related

to how we should administer our pine

shoot beetle program.

DATES: We invite you to comment on

this docket. We will consider all

comments that we receive by August 28,

2000.

The public meetings will be held in:

(1) Salem, OR, on July 24, 2000; (2)

Albany, NY, on July 26, 2000; and (3)

Forest Park, GA, on July 28, 2000. Each

public meeting will begin at 1 p.m. and

is scheduled to end at 5 p.m., local time.

ADDRESSES: If you cannot attend a

public meeting, please send your

written comment and three copies to:

Docket No. 00–058–1, Regulatory

Analysis and Development, PPD,

APHIS, Suite 3C03, 4700 River Road,

Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737–1238.

Please state that your comment refers

to Docket No. 00–058–1.

You may read any comments that we

receive on this docket 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) 690–2817

before coming.

APHIS documents published in the

Federal Register, and related

information, including the names of

organizations and individuals who have

commented on APHIS dockets, are

available on the Internet at http://

www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/

webrepor.html.

The public meetings will be held at

the following locations:

(1) Salem, OR: Oregon Department of

Agriculture, Hearing Room, 635

Capitol NE, Salem, OR.

(2) Albany, NY: New York Department

of Agriculture and Marketing, State

Conference Room, 1 Winners Circle,

Albany, NY.

(3) Forest Park, GA: Atlanta Farmers’

Market, Welcome Center, 16 Forest

Parkway, Forest Park, GA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Coanne E. O’Hern, National Survey

Coordinator, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River

Road Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737–

1236; (301) 734–8247.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service (APHIS) plans to host three

public meetings to discuss how we

should administer our pine shoot beetle

program.

Our pine shoot beetle program is

based on our pine shoot beetle

regulations (7 CFR 301.50–1 through

301.50–10, referred to below as the

regulations). The regulations govern the

interstate movement of regulated

articles from areas quarantined because

of pine shoot beetle. Section 301.50–2 of

the regulations provides a list of articles

regulated because of pine shoot beetle.

Regulated articles are the following pine

(Pinus spp.) products: Bark nuggets

(including bark chips), Christmas trees,

logs with bark attached, lumber with

bark attached, nursery stock, pine

wreaths and garlands, raw pine

materials for pine wreaths and garlands,

and stumps. In addition, any other

article determined to present a risk of

spreading pine shoot beetle may be

designated as a regulated article. Section

301.50–3 of the regulations lists areas

quarantined because of pine shoot

beetle. Quarantined areas include

counties in the following States: Illinois,

Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, New

Hampshire, New York, Ohio,

Pennsylvania, Vermont, West Virginia,