USA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 1 of 8 NOMINATING PARTY : The United States of America FILE NAME: USA CUN1 3 SOIL STRAWBERRY NURSERY Open Field BRIEF DESCRIPTIVE TI TLE OF NOMINATION : Methyl Bromide Critical Use Nomination for Preplant Soil Use for Strawberry Nursery in Open Fields (Submitted i n 20 1 1 for the 201 3 Use Season) CROP NAME (OPEN FIEL D OR PROTECTED): Strawberry Nursery Open Field QUANTITY OF METHYL B ROMIDE NOMINATED : T ABLE 1. Q UANTITY OF M ETHYL B ROMIDE N OMINAT ED

Year N OMINATION A MOUNT 201 3 3,752 kg NOMINATING PARTY CONTACT DETA ILS: Contact Person: John Thompson Title: Division Director Address: Office of Environmental Policy U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street, N.W. Room 2658 Washington, D.C. 20520 U.S.A. Telephone: (202) 647 - 9799 Fax: (202) 647 - 5947 E - mail: thompsonje2@state.gov Following the requirements of Decision IX/6 paragraph (a)(1) The United States of America has determined that the specific use detailed in this Critical Use Nomination is critical because the lack of availability of methyl bromide for this use would result in a significant market disruption. 

### ■ Yes  No Signature Nam e Date Title: (Details on this page are requested under Decision Ex. I/4(7), f or posting on the Ozone Secretariat website under Decision Ex. I/4(8).) In assessing nominations submitted in this format, TEAP and MBTOC will also refer to the original nomination on which the Party’s first
-

year exemption was approved, as well as any su pplementary information provided by the Party in relation to that original nomination. As this earlier information is retained by MBTOC, a Party need not re - submit that earlier information.USA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 2 of 8 CONTACT OR EXPERT(S) FOR FURTHER TECHNICAL DETAILS: Contact/ Expert Person: Jack Housenger Title: Director Address: Biological and Economic Analy sis Division Office of Pesticide Programs U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Mailcode 7503P Washington, D.C. 20460 U.S.A. Teleph one: (703) 308 - 8200 Fax: (703) 308 - 7042 E - mail: Housenger.Jack@epa.gov LIST OF DOCUMENTS SENT TO THE OZONE SECRETARIAT IN OFFICIAL NOMINATION PACKAGE: 1. PAPER DOCUMENTS: Title of paper documents and appendices No. of pages Date sent to Ozone Secretariat

2. ELECTRONIC COPIES OF ALL PAPER DOCUMENTS: *Title of each electronic file (for naming convention see notes above) No. of kilobytes Date sent to Ozone

Secretariat USA CUN1 3 SOIL STRAWBERRY NURSERY Open Field * Identical to paper documentsUSA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 3 of 8 

### METHYL BROMIDE CRITICAL USE RENOMINATION FOR PREPLANT SOIL USE ( OPEN FIELD OR PROTECTED ENVIRONMENT) STRAWBERRY NURSERY 1. SUMMARY OF THE NEED FOR METHYL BROMIDE AS A CRITICAL U SE Methyl bromide has been the long - time standard in nurseries for the treatment of soils to achieve pest - free certification of nursery stock. The U.S. is nominating strawberry nurseries in California for a critical use exemption for methyl bromide for use in 2013 (Table 1) . Currently in California only

methyl bromide and 1,3 - D are specified treatments for nursery stock certification (e.g., CDFA, 200 9

— NI PM #7) . By

regulation, the use of 1,3 - D is limited to soils where soil moisture and texture are amen able to nematicidal activity . According to the California Strawberry

Nursery Association growers on sandy soils have been able to use 1,3 - D/chloropicrin mi xtures as an approved treatment but the nomination is for the critical use of methyl bromide on 19 h a where 1,3 - D is not an approved treatment, is not economically feasible or is limited by

township caps. No other alternat e strategies are approved for certification purposes. The U . S . G overnment (USG) has reviewed all factors affecting transition rates in this sector. Based on this assessment the transition rate has been greatl y increased for this sector. For the area covered in this nomination, the USG believes that the narrative discussion included in this document is technicall y valid. The USG has nominated amounts of methyl bromide based onl y on those sub - sectors that cannot transition away from methyl bromide at the accelerated rate. 2. SUMMARIZE WHY KEY ALTERNATIVES ARE NOT FEASIBLE California nurseries currently use meth yl bromide on all of their land for transplants designated as quarantin e pre - shipment (QPS), which makes up 99% of methyl bromide use by nurseries. For the 201 3 season, methyl bromide continues to be critical for California strawberry nurseries for 22 ha of non - QPS uses where there are regulatory restrictions on 1, 3 - D and chloropicrin. Regulations in California on the use of 1,3 - D and chloropicrin restrict their use in some locations, such as clay

soils and where township caps are in place. Research trials in California have indicated that iodomethane/chloropicrin, 1,3 - D/chloropicrin followed by dazomet, and chloropicrin followed b y dazomet provided similar pest control in runner nurseries when compared to meth yl bromide/chloropicrin (e.g., Fennimore et al. , 2008a; Kabir et al
. , 2005). The u se of low permeable films has improved efficacy of alternatives. 3. I S THE USE COVERED BY A CERTIFIC ATION STANDARD? The certification for strawberry nurseries (e.g., CDFA, 200 9 ) located in California includes zero tolerance for damagin g disease s and plant - parasitic nematodes in order to minimize the spread ofUSA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 4 of 8 these pests to production fields . State authorities may determine appropriate measures to achieve pest - free designation. California describes methods to prepare field soils using methyl bromide or 1,3 - D (CDFA, 200 9

— NI PM #7). California regulations (e.g., CDFA, 200 9

— NI PM #3) for nursery standards (reg. 3060.2 - a) include: “All nursery stock shall be kept ‘commercially’ clean with respect to established pests of general distributio n. Commercially clean shall mean that pests are under effective control, are present only to a light degree, and that only a few of the plants in any lot or block of nursery stock or on the premises show any infestation or infection, and of these none sho w more than a few individuals of any insect, animal or weed pests, or more than a few individual infestations of any plant disease.” 4. IF PART OF THE CROP AREA IS TREATED WITH METHYL BROMIDE, INDICATE THE REASON WHY METHYL BROMIDE I S NOT USED IN THE OT HER AREA, AND IDENTIFY W HAT ALTERNATIVE STRA TEGIES ARE USED TO CONTROL THE TARGET P ATHOGENS AND WEEDS W ITHOUT METHYL BROMIDE THERE. All nurseries currentl y treat soils with meth yl bromide. This nomination is only for approximately

1% of nursery

soils no t designated as QPS and where 1,3 - D is not effective or available due to regulatory requirements of soil t ype, moisture, or township caps . 5. WOULD IT BE FEASIBLE TO EXPAND THE USE OF THESE METHODS TO COVER AT LEAST PART OF THE CROP THAT HAS REQUESTED US E OF METHYL BROMIDE? WHAT CHANGES WOULD BE NEC ESSARY TO ENABLE THIS? As previously

stated, methyl bromide is critical for the small number of non - QPS hectares that cannot be treated with 1,3 - D due to soil ty pe, moisture, or township caps . The USG has rev iewed all factors affecting transition rates in this sector. Based on this assessment the transition rate has been greatl y increased for most portions of this sector. For the area covered in this nomination, the USG believes that the narrative discussion included in this document is technicall y valid. The USG has nominated amounts of methy l bromide based only on those sub sectors that cannot transition away from meth yl bromide at the accelerated rate. 6. SUMMARY OF RECENT RESEARCH Research results fo r strawberry nurseries were not presented at the MBAO meeting in 2010. Previous r esearch for the strawberry runner nurseries in California (e.g., Fennimore et al. , 2008a; Kabir et al. , 2005) has indicated that in research plots some alternatives appear to provide pest management levels comparable to traditional methyl bromide treatments. However, restrictions or lack of efficacy

of 1,3 - D has result ed in the critical need for methyl bromide for a small portion of California nurseries.USA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 5 of 8 Previous research (e .g., Larson and Shaw, 2007) suggested that inconsistent efficacy of alternatives remains the greatest problem for transition to alternatives by this industry

(this was also the case for nurseries in Spain; see, e.g., Garcia - Mendez et al. , 2007). Alternati ves that have been evaluated in research trials over the past several y ears are 1,3 - D/chloropicrin, 1,3 - D/ chloropicrin + metam - sodium, 1,3 - D and metam - sodium, and dazomet as a follow - up application to 1,3 - D/ chloropicrin or chloropicrin (Fennimore et al. , 2 008b). For the effective production of runner plants, weeds must be kept to a minimum. Recently a report on weed control was published (Fennimore et al. , 2008a). Results indicated that iodomethane/chloropicrin, 1,3 - D/chloropicrin followed b y dazomet, chloropicrin followed b y dazomet, and methyl bromide/chloropicrin all provided comparable weed control with similar hand - weeding costs. Costs of iodomethane for California nurseries were considered uncertain since it is not currentl y on the market for commercial use in California. A c ost anal ys i s for alternatives for California strawberry nurseries is presented in this document. The industry

continues to refine protocols for effective alternatives, but this requires several seasons of data gathering. For example, the use of 1,3 - D/ chloropicrin followed b y dazomet or chloropicrin followed b y dazomet appeared more effective in nursery trials in California (Kabir et al. , 2005) than previous nursery trials where chloropicrin was applied alone (Larson and Sh aw, 2000). Fennimore et al. (2008 b ) found variable effects and indicated that further research is necessary

to optimize the treatment regime. By optimizing methods identified through research alternative strategies are being identified. 7. ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF ALTERNATIVES T his study calculated net revenue as gross revenue minus operating costs. This is a good measure of the direct losses of income that may be suffered by

the users. Itshould be noted that net revenue does not represent net in come to the users. Net income, which indicates profitability of an operation for an enterprise, is gross revenue minus the sum of operating and fixed costs. Net income is smaller than the net revenue measured in this study , often substantially so. We did not include fixed costs because they are difficult to measure and verify . The economic anal ys is of the strawberry nursery application s compared data on yields, crop prices, revenues and costs using meth yl bromide and using alternative pest control regime ns in order to estimate the loss of methyl bromide availability . The alternatives identified as technicall y feasible

– in cases of low pest infestation 1

– for California are 1,3 - D + c hloropicrin followed b y m etam sodium . Io domethane plus chloropicrin was registered in California on December of 2010. However, the rates are lower than those previousl y tested on strawberry nursery plants and the buffers are up to 10 times larger than the rest of the U.S. The economic factors that really drives the feasibil ity

anal ys is for nursery

stock production uses of methyl bromide are: (1) yield losses, referring to reductions in the quantity produced, (2) 1 The USG does not request methyl bromide for use in areas of low to m oderate pest pressure. Only cases where key pests are present at moderate to high levels require methyl bromide for pest pressure.USA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 6 of 8 increased production costs, which may be due to the higher - cost of using an alternative, additional pest control r equirements, and/or resulting shifts in other production or harvesting practices (3) qualit y losses, which generall y affect the quantity and price received for the goods, and (4) missed market windows due to plant back time restrictions, which also affect the quantity and price received for the goods. The economic reviewers then anal yz ed crop budgets for pre - plant sectors to determine the likel y economic impact if methyl bromide were unavailable. Various measures were used to quantify the impacts, includi ng the following: (1) Loss per Hectare. For crops, this measure is closely tied to income. Itis relatively eas y to measure, but may

be difficult to interpret in isolation. (2) Loss per Kilogram of Methyl Bromide . This measure indicates the value of methyl bromide to crop production. (3) Loss as a Percentage of Gross Revenue. This measure has the advantage that gross revenues are usually

eas y to measure, at least over some unit, e.g. , a hectare of land or a storage operation. However, high value co mmodities or crops may provide high revenues but may also entail high costs. Losses of even a small percentage of gross revenues could have important impacts on the profitability of the activity . (4) Loss as a Percentage of Net Operating Revenue . We def ine net cash revenues as gross revenues minus operating costs. This is a very good indicator as to the direct losses of income that may be suffered by

the owners or operators of an enterprise. However, operating costs can often be difficult to measure an d verify . (5) Operating Profit Margin . We define operating profit margin to be net operating revenue divided by

gross revenue per hectare. This measure would provide the best indication of the total impact of the loss of methyl bromide to an enterprise. Again, operating costs may be difficult to measure and fixed costs even more difficult, therefore fixed costs were not included in the anal ys is. These measures represent different way s to assess the economic feasibility of methyl bromide alternatives fo r meth yl bromide users, who are strawberry nursery producers in this case. Because producers (suppliers) represent an integral part of an y definition of a market, we interpret the threshold of significant market disruption to be met if there is a signific ant impact on commodity

suppliers using methyl bromide. The economic measures provide the basis for making that determination. California strawberry

nursery growers are not expected to see an y yi eld or quality impacts with 1,3 - D / chloropicrin plus metam s odium ( Table 2 ). But, the new registration of iodomethane plus chloropicrin in California is at a rate lower than those previousl y tested and may lead to yi eld and quality

losses.USA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 7 of 8 T ABLE 2 . C ALIFORNIA S TRAWBERRY G ROWERS A SSOCIATION : E CONOMIC I MPACTS OF M ETHYL B ROMIDE A LTERNATIVES .

CALIFORNIA SGA M ETHYL B ROMIDE I ODOMETHANE (REG . D EC 2010) 1,3 D + PIC FB METAM P RODUCTION L OSS (%) 0% 0% 1 0% P RODUCTION PER H ECTARE 372 372 235 * P RICE PER U NIT ( US $) $ 110.23 $ 110.23 $ 110.23

= G ROSS REVENUE PER H ECTARE ( US $) $ 41,019 $ 41,019 $ 36,918

- O PERATING C OSTS PER H ECTARE ( US $)** $ 28,585 $ 43 , 295 $ 44,788

= N ET REVENUE PER H ECTARE ( US $) $ 12,434 $ (2,276) $ (7,870) L OSS M EASURES * 1. L OSS PER H ECTARE ( US $) $ 0 $ 14,710 $ 20.305 2. L OSS PER KILOGRAM OF M ETHYL B ROMIDE ( US $) $ 0 $ 55.85 $ 77.09 3. L OSS AS A P ERCENTAGE OF G ROSS REVENUE (%) 0% 36 % 50 % 4. L OSS AS A P ERCENTAGE OF N ET O PERATING REVENUE (%) 0% 118 % 163 % 5. O PERATING P ROFIT M ARGIN (%) 30% - 6 % - 21 % **Note that the measures in the tables bel ow must be interpret ed carefully. Operating costs do not include fixed costs and net revenue equals gross revenue minus operating costs. Production numbers with iodomethane and the low er use rates in California are still pending. 8 . RESULTANT CHANGES TO REQUESTED EXEMPTION QUANTITIES T ABLE 3 : N OMINATION A MOUNT (201 3 ) C al if or nia St ra wbe rry Nu rs er y A ssoc . S ec tor T otal / Av er age Qu anti ty Re que st ed fo r 2012: Am ou nt (kgs) 4, 690 4,690 Qu an ti ty Re co mme nded by MB TO C/ TE

AP fo r 2012 : Am ou nt (kgs) 3, 752 3,752 Am ou nt (kgs) 3, 752 3,752 Area (h a) 23 23 Ra te 160 160 Tr ans itio n fr om

2 012 Ba se lin e Ad jus te d Val ue Pe rcen ta ge (% ) 0% 0% Am ou nt (kgs) 

### 3, 752 3, 752 Area (h a) 19 19 Ra te 200 200 SE CTOR

Qu an ti ty Ap prove d by Pa rt ie s fo r 2012: Quan tityR eq ui re d for 2013 N om

in atio n: ST RA WB ER RY

N UR SERYUSA CUN1 3 SOIL Strawberry Nursery Open Field - CA Page 8 of 8 CITATIONS CDFA (California Department of Food and Agriculture). 200 9 . http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/PE/Nursery /NI PM.html Regulation for nursery

and seed inspection (NI PM #3), http://www.cdfa.ca.gov//phpps/PE/Nursery /pdfs/nipm_3_regs_ns y_sees_insp.pdf ; Approved treatment and h andling procedures to ensure against nematode pest infestation of nursery stock (NI PM #7), http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/PE/Nursery /pdfs/NI PM_7.pdf ; CDFA Strawberry

Registration and C ertification Program, http://fpms.ucdavis.edu/Strawberry /CDFAStrawRegs.html Fennimore, S. A., Haar, M. J., Goodhue, R. E., and Winterbottom, C. Q. 2008 a . Weed control in strawberry

runner plant nurseries with methyl bromide alternative fumigants. HortScience 43(5):1495 - 1500. Fennimore, S. A., Duniway , J. M., Browne, G. T., Martin, F. N., Ajwa, H. A., Westerdahl, B.B., Goodhue, R. E., Haar, M., and Winterbottom, C. 2008 b . Methyl bromide alternatives evaluated for California strawberry nurseries. California Agriculture 62(2):62 - 67. http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3194&context=anrcs/californiaagric ulture Garcia - Mendez, E., De Cal, A., Melgarejo, P., Salto, T., Martinez - Beringola, M. L ., Redondo, C., Martinez - Treceno, A., Becerril, M., Andrade, M. A., Medina, J. J., Soria, C., L opez Aranda, J. M., and Garcia - Sinovas, D. 2007. Strawberry nurseries in Spain: alternatives to methyl bromide, 2006 results. Annual International Research Conference on Methy l Bromide Alternatives and Emissions Reductions (2007) . http://www.mbao.org/2007/Proceedings/063L opez ArandaJSpainExperimentsNursery2006.pdf Kabir, Z., Fennimore, S. A., Duniway , J. M., Martin, F. N., Browne, G. T., Winterbottom, C. Q., Ajwa, H. A., Westerd ahl, B. B., Goodhue, R. E., and Haar, M. J. 2005. Alternatives to methyl bromide for strawberry runner plant production. HortScience 40(6):1709 - 1715. Larson, K. D., and Shaw, D.V. 2007. Strawberry nursery soil fumigation and runner transplant fruit prod uction. 2007 Annual International Research Conference on Methy l Bromide Alternatives and Emissions Reductions. http://www.mbao.org/2007/Proceedings/072Larso nKStrawberry nursery soilfumigation.pdf Larson, K. D., and Shaw, D.V. 2000. Soil Fumigation and Runner Plant Production: A Sy nthesis of 4 Yrs of Strawberry

Nursery Field Trials. HortSci 35(4):642 - 646.