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

26410 

Vol. 83, No. 110 

Thursday, June 7, 2018 

1To view the notice and the supporting 

documents, go to https://www.regulations.gov/ 

docket?D=APHIS20170098. 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2017–0098] 

Notice of a Determination Regarding 

the Classical Swine Fever and Swine 

Vesicular Disease Status of Japan 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are advising the public of 

our determination that Japan is free of 

classical swine fever (CSF) and swine 

vesicular disease (SVD). Based on an 

evaluation of the CSF and SVD status of 

Japan, which we made available to the 

public for review and comment through 

a previous notice, the Administrator has 

determined that CSF and SVD are not 

present in Japan and that live swine, 

pork, and pork products may safely be 

imported into the United States from 

Japan subject to conditions in the 

regulations. 

DATES: This change in Japan’s CSF and 

SVD status will be recognized on July 9, 

2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Kelly Rhodes, Senior Staff Veterinarian, 

Regionalization Evaluation Services, 

National Import Export Services, VS, 

APHIS, USDA, 4700 River Road Unit 38, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1231; email: 

Kelly.Rhodes@aphis.usda.gov; (301) 

851–3315. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 

(referred to below as the regulations) 

govern the importation of certain 

animals and animal products into the 

United States in order to prevent the 

introduction of various animal diseases, 

including classical swine fever (CSF) 

and swine vesicular disease (SVD). 

These are dangerous and communicable 

diseases of swine. 

Within part 94, § 94.9 contains 

requirements governing the importation 

of pork and pork products from regions 

where CSF exists. Section 94.10 

contains importation requirements for 

swine from regions where CSF is 

considered to exist. Section 94.12 

contains requirements governing the 

importation of pork or pork products 

from regions where SVD exists. Section 

94.14 prohibits the importation of 

domestic swine which are moved from 

or transit any region in which SVD is 

known to exist. 

In accordance with §§ 94.9(a)(1) and 

94.10(a)(1), the Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service (APHIS) maintains a 

web-based list of regions which the 

Agency considers free of CSF. Sections 

94.9(a)(2) and 94.10(a)(2) state that 

APHIS will add a region to this list after 

it conducts an evaluation of the region 

and finds that CSF is not present. 

Similarly, in accordance with 

§ 94.12(a)(1), APHIS maintains a webbased list of regions which the Agency 

considers free of SVD. Paragraph (a)(2) 

of this section states that APHIS will 

add a region to this list after it conducts 

an evaluation of the region and finds 

that SVD is not present. 

The regulations in § 92.2 contain 

requirements for requesting the 

recognition of the animal health status 

of a region (as well as for the approval 

of the export of a particular type of 

animal or animal product to the United 

States from a foreign region). If, after 

review and evaluation of the 

information submitted in support of the 

request, APHIS believes the request can 

be safely granted, APHIS will make its 

evaluation available for public comment 

through a document published in the 

Federal Register. Following the close of 

the comment period, APHIS will review 

all comments received and will make a 

final determination regarding the 

request that will be detailed in another 

document published in the Federal 

Register. 

In accordance with that process, Japan 

requested that APHIS evaluate the CSF 

and SVD disease status of the country. 

Based on our evaluation, we determined 

that Japan is free of both CSF and SVD 

and that the surveillance, prevention, 

and control measures implemented by 

Japan are sufficient to minimize the 

likelihood of introducing CSF and SVD 

into the United States via imports of 

species or products susceptible to these 

diseases. 

On February 20, 2018, we published 

in the Federal Register (83 FR 7138, 

Docket No. APHIS–2017–0098) a 

notice 1 in which we announced the 

availability for review and comment of 

our evaluation of the CSF and SVD 

status of Japan. We solicited comments 

on the notice for 30 days ending on 

March 22, 2018. We received no 

comments on our evaluation. 

Therefore, based on the findings of 

our evaluation and the absence of 

comments that would lead us to 

reconsider those findings, we are 

announcing our determination to add 

Japan to the list of regions declared free 

of CSF and the list of regions declared 

free of SVD. These lists are available on 

the APHIS website at https://

www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/ 

animalhealth/animal-and-animalproduct-import-information/ct_animal_

disease_status. 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, 7781– 

7786, and 8301–8317; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 

136a; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 

371.4. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 1st day of 

June 2018. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12186 Filed 6–6–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2017–0073] 

Bayer CropScience LP; Availability of 

a Preliminary Plant Pest Risk 

Assessment, Draft Environmental 

Assessment, Preliminary Finding of No 

Significant Impact, and Preliminary 

Determination of Nonregulated Status 

for Cotton Genetically Engineered For 

Resistance to HPPD-Inhibitor 

Herbicides (e.g., Isoxaflutole) and 

Glyphosate 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 


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