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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examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

27277 

Vol. 79, No. 92 

Tuesday, May 13, 2014 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2013–0097] 

Notice of Availability of a Draft 

Framework for Implementing the 

United States-Canada Foreign Animal 

Disease Zoning Arrangement 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of availability and 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service is making available 

for public comment a draft framework 

for implementing and maintaining a 

foreign animal disease zoning 

arrangement between the United States 

and Canada. The draft framework 

provides an operational plan for the two 

countries to recognize each other’s 

decisions to control a highly contagious 

foreign animal disease outbreak through 

zoning. The draft framework also 

establishes a structure for maintaining 

the arrangement over time and strategies 

for engaging governmental and nongovernmental stakeholders in any 

actions taken under the arrangement, 

including planning and preparedness. 

This zoning arrangement will facilitate 

continued trade between disease-free 

areas of the United States and Canada 

while safeguarding animal health in 

both countries. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before July 14, 

2014. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/#!document

Detail;D=APHIS-2013-0097-0001. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2013–0097, 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-2013-0097 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: Dr. 

Kelly Rhodes, Regionalization 

Evaluation Services, National Import 

Export Services, VS, APHIS, USDA, 

4700 River Road, Unit 38, Riverdale, 

MD 20737–1231; kelly.rhodes@

aphis.usda.gov; (301) 851–3315. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

In October 2012, the United States 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) and 

the Canadian Food Inspection Agency 

(CFIA) jointly agreed to establish a 

foreign animal disease (FAD) zoning 

arrangement under the U.S.-Canada 

Regulatory Cooperation Council. The 

arrangement lays out the basic 

parameters by which the two countries 

intend to recognize each other’s 

decisions to control highly contagious 

FAD outbreaks through zoning, that is, 

determining and specifying a particular 

area in a portion of the country wherein 

a quarantine should be established to 

control a contagious FAD outbreak. The 

arrangement is based on reciprocal 

evaluations of veterinary infrastructure 

and emergency response capacity which 

concluded that each country can 

effectively use zoning to control an FAD 

outbreak. This notice makes available 

for public comment a draft framework 

that provides guidance for the USDA’s 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS) and CFIA to implement 

and maintain the zoning arrangement. 

The United States and Canada both 

have response plans for highly 

contagious FAD outbreaks in place that 

are based on internationally accepted 

zoning principles. The plans call for 

establishing an area of control that 

consists of a central infected zone 

surrounded by one or more additional 

zones. The infected zone is the focus of 

disease eradication efforts, while the 

entire area of control is subject to 

surveillance for the disease agent and 

movement restrictions on animals and 

other commodities that could transmit 

the agent. The affected country may 

choose to modify or redefine the 

boundaries of an area of control during 

the course of an outbreak following 

procedures outlined in the draft 

framework. 

The territory outside of an area of 

control is considered free of the disease. 

The claim to freedom is largely 

substantiated by demonstrating, through 

epidemiological investigation, 

movement tracing, and surveillance that 

the outbreak is contained within the 

area of control. The affected country 

may also choose to increase active or 

passive surveillance for the disease 

agent in the disease-free zone. 

Under the draft framework, each 

country would notify the other of a 

confirmed FAD detection in domestic 

livestock within its territory while in 

the process of establishing an area of 

control. The unaffected (partner) 

country may initially restrict the 

importation of commodities that could 

transmit the disease from the affected 

country. The extent of the restrictions 

would depend on the disease, the 

magnitude of the outbreak, and other 

epidemiological factors. 

The affected country would apply to 

the partner country for recognition of an 

established area of control, following 

procedures outlined in the draft 

framework. Once this recognition 

occurs, trade between disease-free zones 

could resume as normal, with few 

restrictions. The partner country may 

impose additional import restrictions if 

the disease is detected outside of an area 

of control during the response period. 

The draft framework outlines 

procedures for a representative of the 

partner country to embed in and 

monitor the progress of the outbreak 

response. It also contains contingencies 

to address the rare instances when a 

widespread, multi-focal, or rapidly 

progressing outbreak may temporarily 

overwhelm the resources of the affected 

country and negatively impact its ability 

to contain the disease agent through 

zoning. 

The draft framework further 

establishes a Federal-level governance 

structure designed to preserve the 

concept and intent of the zoning 

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27278 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 92 / Tuesday, May 13, 2014 / Notices 

arrangement and promote the 

engagement and active participation of 

stakeholders in its implementation. It 

also outlines a strategy for APHIS and 

CFIA to work with other Federal, State, 

provincial, and non-governmental 

stakeholders to develop the means 

necessary to facilitate zoning 

recognition during an outbreak and 

minimize cross-border trade 

disruptions. 

The draft framework may be viewed 

on the Regulations.gov Web site or in 

our reading room (see ADDRESSES above 

for a link to Regulations.gov and 

information on the location and hours of 

the reading room). You may request 

paper copies of the document by calling 

or writing to the person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Please 

refer to the title of this document when 

requesting copies. 

APHIS will consider all comments we 

receive on the FAD zoning arrangement 

draft framework. Comments on the 

framework that address disease risk, 

import restrictions, establishment of 

areas of control, operational procedures, 

and communications with affected 

stakeholders would be particularly 

useful as we continue to develop the 

framework. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 7th day of 

May 2014. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2014–10998 Filed 5–12–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Information Collection; Pesticide-Use 

Proposal 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comment. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 

Forest Service is seeking comments 

from all interested individuals and 

organizations on the new information 

collection, Pesticide-Use Proposal. 

DATES: Comments must be received in 

writing on or before July 14, 2014 to be 

assured of consideration. Comments 

received after that date will be 

considered to the extent practicable. 

ADDRESSES: Comments concerning this 

notice should be addressed to Stephen 

A. Covell, Mail Stop 1110, USDA Forest 

Service, Forest Health Protection, 1400 

Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250. 

Comments also may be submitted by 

email to scovell@fs.fed.us. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice may be made available to the 

public through relevant Web sites and 

upon request. For this reason, please do 

not include in your comments 

information of a confidential nature, 

such as sensitive personal information 

or proprietary information. If you send 

an email comment, your email address 

will be automatically captured and 

included as part of the comment that is 

placed in the public docket and made 

available on the Internet. Please note 

that responses to this public comment 

request containing any routine notice 

about the confidentiality of the 

communication will be treated as public 

comments that may be made available to 

the public notwithstanding the 

inclusion of the routine notice. 

The public may inspect the draft 

supporting statement and/or comments 

received at 201 14th Street SW., 

Washington, DC 20250 during normal 

business hours. Visitors are encouraged 

to call ahead to 703–605–5342 to 

facilitate entry to the building. The 

public may request an electronic copy of 

the draft supporting statement and/or 

any comments received be sent via 

return email. Requests should be 

emailed to scovell@fs.fed.us. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Stephen A. Covell, State and Private 

Forestry, Forest Health Protection, 

telephone 703–605–5342, email 

scovell@fs.fed.us. Individuals who use 

telecommunication devices for the deaf 

(TDD) may call the Federal Relay 

Service (FRS) at 1–800–877–8339 

twenty-four hours a day, every day of 

the year, including holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Pesticide-Use Proposal. 

OMB Number: 0596–NEW. 

Type of Request: New. 

Abstract: USDA Forest Service (FS) 

has Federal land stewardship 

responsibilities for approximately 193 

million acres. FS land management 

responsibilities require use of integrated 

pest management, which in certain 

circumstances includes use of 

pesticides. FS currently uses form FS– 

2100–2, Pesticide-Use Proposal (PUP) 

internally to collect and review 

pesticide-applications intended to 

control pests of grasslands and forests 

under its administrative responsibility 

(under FSM 2150, and FSH 2109.14). FS 

anticipates requests from outside 

entities for application of pesticides 

upon FS-administered lands within 

rights-of-way easements, permitted 

lands, and under similar circumstances. 

The FS proposes to use the PUP form to 

collect pesticide project information 

from those outside entities to facilitate 

authorization of selected activities. 

Completion of the PUP form includes 

identification of pests to be controlled, 

pesticide to be applied, and other 

regulatory compliance information such 

as use of certified applicators. Because 

diverse pesticide-use projects are 

designed for local conditions, it is 

appropriate for the PUP form to be used 

to ensure that essential details are 

uniformly assembled for review. 

Proposals will be evaluated by FS 

pesticide use coordinators and other 

administrative personnel to safeguard 

human health and ecological protection 

consistent with FS land use 

management programs. Form and 

instructions will be posted on a FS Web 

site for ready public availability. 

Affected Public: Individuals and 

Households, Businesses and 

Organizations, and State, Local or Tribal 

Governments responsible for vegetation 

management along rights-of-way across 

lands administered by the Forest 

Service. 

Estimate of Burden per response: 12 

hours. 

Estimated Annual Number of 

Respondents: 36. 

Estimated Annual Number of 

Responses: 50. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden on 

Respondents: 600 hours. 

Comment is Invited: Comment is 

invited on: (1) Whether this collection 

of information is necessary for the stated 

purposes and the proper performance of 

the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information will have 

practical or scientific utility; (2) the 

accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the 

burden of the collection of information, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; (3) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (4) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on respondents, including the use of 

automated, electronic, mechanical, or 

other technological collection 

techniques or other forms of information 

technology. 

All comments received in response to 

this notice, including names and 

addresses when provided, will be a 

matter of public record. Comments will 

be summarized and included in the 

submission request toward Office of 

Management and Budget approval. 

Dated: May 7, 2014. 

James Hubbard, 

Deputy Chief, State and Private Forestry. 

[FR Doc. 2014–10938 Filed 5–12–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3411–15–P 

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