57310 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 185 / Friday, September 22, 2000 / Notices

Background

Codex was established in 1962 by two

United Nations organizations, the Food

and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and

the World Health Organization (WHO).

Codex is the major international

organization for encouraging fair

international trade in food and

protecting the health and economic

interests of consumers. Through

adoption of food standards, codes of

practice, and other guidelines

developed by its committees, and by

promoting their adoption and

implementation by governments, Codex

seeks to ensure that the world’s food

supply is sound, wholesome, free from

adulteration, and correctly labeled.

The Codex Committee on Food

Hygiene was established to draft basic

provisions on food hygiene to all foods.

The United States hosts this Committee

and representatives of the United States

Government will chair the Committee

meeting.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public

Meeting

The provisional agenda items and the

relevant documents to be discussed

during the public meeting are:

1. Report by the Secretariat on Matters

Referred by the Codex Alimentarius

Commission and/or Other Codex

Committees to the Food Hygiene

Committee, Document CX/FH 00/2

2. Preliminary Report of the ad hoc

Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment

of Microbiological Hazards in Food and

Related Matters, Document CX/FH 00/3

3. Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic

Practice for Primary Production,

Harvesting and Packaging of Fresh

Fruits and Vegetables, Documents CX/

FH 00/4—Comments at Step 3 CX/FH

00/4–Add.1

4. Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic

Practice for Pre-Cut Fruits and

Vegetables, Documents CX/FH 00/5—

Comments at Step 3 CX/FH 00/5–Add.1

5. Proposed Draft Principles and

Guidelines for the Conduct of

Microbiological Risk Management,

Documents CX/FH 00/6—Comments at

Step 3 CX/FH 00/6–Add. 1

6. Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic

Practice for Milk and Milk Products,

Documents CX/FH 00/7—Comments at

Step 3 CX/FH 00/7–Add. 1

7. Proposed Draft Guidelines for

Hygienic Reuse of Processing Water in

Food Plants, Documents CX/FH 00/8—

Comments at Step 3 CX/FH 00/8–Add.

1

8. Proposed Draft Guidelines for the

Control of Listeria monocytogenes in

Foods, Documents CX/FH 00/9—

Comments at Step 3 CX/FH 00/9–Add.1

9. Discussion Paper on the

Implementation of HACCP in Small

and/or Less Developed Businesses,

Documents CX/FH 00/10

10. Discussion Paper on the

Antimicrobial Resistant Bacteria in

Food, Document CX/FH 00/11

11. Discussion Paper on the Proposed

Draft Guidelines for the Validation of

Food Hygiene Control Measures,

Document CX/FH 00/12

12. Discussion Paper on the Proposed

Draft Guidelines for Evaluating

Objectionable Matter in Food,

Document CX/FH 00/13

13. Priorities for the Revision of Codes

of Hygienic Practice, Document CX/FH

00/14

Additional Public Notification

Public awareness of all segments of

rulemaking and policy development is

important. Consequently, in an effort to

better ensure that minorities, women,

and persons with disabilities are aware

of this notice, FSIS will announce it and

provide copies of this Federal Register

publication in the FSIS Constituent

Update. FSIS provides a weekly FSIS

Constituent Update, which is

communicated via fax to over 300

organizations and individuals. In

addition, the update is available on-line

through the FSIS web page located at

http://www.fsis.usda.gov. The update is

used to provide information regarding

FSIS policies, procedures, regulations,

Federal Register notices, FSIS public

meetings, recalls, and any other types of

information that could affect or would

be of interest to our constituents/

stakeholders. The constituent fax list

consists of industry, trade, and farm

groups, consumer interest groups, allied

health professionals, scientific

professionals, and other individuals that

have requested to be included. Through

these various channels, FSIS is able to

provide information to a much broader,

more diverse audience. For more

information and to be added to the

constituent fax list, fax your request to

the Congressional and Public Affairs

Office, at (202) 720–5704.

Done at Washington, DC on: September 18,

2000.

F. Edward Scarbrough,

U.S. Manager for Codex.

[FR Doc. 00–24418 Filed 9–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–DM–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Ashland Post-Fire Project, Custer

National Forest, Rosebud and Power

River Counties, MT

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an

environmental impact statement.

SUMMARY: The USDA, Forest Service,

will prepare an environmental impact

statement (EIS) for a proposal to move

toward Forest Plan goals and objectives

by supporting restoration practices and

rehabilitation efforts within the Tobin

and Stag Fires on the Ashland Post-Fire

Project Area. The Forest Plan goals and

objectives that will be met include

minimizing public safety hazards

through hazard tree removal,

maintaining soil productivity and

minimizing soil erosion by managing

fuel loading and arrangement, and

capturing economic values associated

with restoration activities as a result of

timely harvest of fire-damaged trees

(dead or where mortality is imminent).

We are not proposing to remove any live

trees. The proposed action will be

accomplished through restoration

activities stipulated as part of harvest

operations and through restoration

activities funded by KnutsenVandenberg collection from post-fire

harvest. The EIS will tier to the 1987

Custer National Forest and Grasslands

Land and Resource Management Plan

(Forest Plan) which provide the overall

management direction for the area. The

proposed action is consistent with the

Forest Plan.

The proposed activities are located

within the Tobin and Stag Fire

perimeters that include the Three-Mile,

King, Odell, Cow, Brian, and Padget

drainages on the Ashland Ranger

District, in Eastern Montana. The

analysis area consists of approximately

71,200 acres with proposed activities

within approximately 4,500 acres. The

following activities are proposed: (1)

Minimize the potential for public safety

hazards by harvesting fire-damaged

trees within one and a half tree lengths

from the edge of Forest Service

Transportation System roads; (2)

maintain soil productivity and

minimize accelerated erosion; (3) limit

fuel loads and their spatial arrangement

through treatment of dead and dying

trees through various activities from

harvest operations; and (4) capture

economic values associated with

restoration activities as a result of

harvesting fire-damaged trees within a

timely manner. The projects would be

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 185 / Friday, September 22, 2000 / Notices 57311

implemented from fiscal year 2001 into

the year 2002. The agency invites

written comments and suggestions on

the scope of this project. In addition, the

agency gives notice of this analysis so

that interested and affected people are

aware of how they may participate and

contribute to the planning process and

final decision.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope

of the analysis should be received in

writing by October 2, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Send written concerns and

comments to Elizabeth A. McFarland,

District Ranger, Ashland Ranger District,

P.O. Box 168, Ashland, Montana 59003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Direct questions about the proposed

action and EIS to Kim Reid, Project

Coordinator, 1310 Main St., Billings,

Montana 59105, phone (406) 657–6200

ext. 233 or (406) 784–2344.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

purpose of the Forest Service proposal

is to further movement towards desired

conditions outlined in the Forest Plan,

by:

• Manipulating fuel loading in order

to reduce the potential for high intensity

fire effects to resources and to reduce

difficulty in future suppression

activities with the treatment areas.

• Capture economic values associated

with restoration activities as a result of

harvesting fire-damaged trees (dead or

where mortality is imminent) within a

timely manner.

• Reduce public safety hazards

caused by fire-damaged trees within one

and a half tree lengths from edge of

Forest transportation system roads.

The proposed action will be

consistent with the Forest Plan, which

provides goals, objectives, standards

and guidelines of the various activities

and land allocations on the forest. The

Forest Plan allocates the project area

into six management areas (MAs): MA

B—Rangeland Emphasis; MAD—

Wildlife/Timber/Rangeland; MAG—

Timber emphasis; MAJ—Riding and

Hiking emphasis; MAN—Riparian

emphasis; and MAM—Hardwood Draw

emphasis. Private lands (about 1000

acres in the Stag Fire and a little over

40 acres in the Tobin Fire areas) are also

included within the project area

boundary. Although excluded from

Forest Service activities, project access

and the condition of private lands will

be considered during alternative

development and when analyzing

potential cumulative effects.

The key issue topics identified to date

include:

• Long-term fuel loading and spatial

arrangement,

• Timeliness and economic feasibility

of harvest in order to recuperate

economic value,

• Loss of soil productivity due to

potential accelerated runoff events,

• Impacts on soil properties,

infiltration, and surface overland flow,

• Public safety, and,

• Wildlife habitat and other species

considerations.

A range of reasonable alternatives will

be considered, including a no action

alternative. Based on the issues gathered

through scoping, the action alternatives

will vary in (1) the amount and location

of acres considered for treatment, (2) the

number, type, and location of activity,

(3) the silvicultural and post-harvest

practices prescribed, (4) the amount of

temporary road constructed for access,

and (5) the amount of time needed to

move the area toward a desired

condition.

Public participation will be especially

important at several points during the

analysis, beginning with the scoping

process (40 CFR 1501.7). The Forest

Service will be seeking information,

comments, and assistance from Federal,

State, local agencies, tribes and other

individuals or organizations who may

be interested in or affected by the

proposed project. This input will be

used in preparation of the draft EIS.

Continued scoping and public

participation efforts will be used by the

interdisciplinary team to identify new

issues, determine alternatives in

response to the issues, and determine

the level of analysis needed to disclose

potential biological, physical, economic,

and social impacts associated with this

project. The scoping process includes:

• Identification of potential issues.

• Identification of issues to be

analyzed in depth.

• Elimination of insignificant issues

that have been covered by a relevant

previous environmental process.

• Exploration of additional

alternatives based on the issues

identified during the scoping process.

• Identification of potential

environmental effects of the proposed

action and alternatives (i.e. direct,

indirect, and cumulative effects and

connected actions).

The draft EIS is expected to be filed

with the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) and to be available for

public review by mid October 2000. The

EPA will publish a notice of availability

of the draft EIS in the Federal Register.

The comment period on the draft EIS

will be 45 days from the date the EPA

notice appears in the Federal Register.

At that time, copies of the draft EIS will

be distributed to interested and affected

agencies, organizations, and members of

the public for their review and

comments. It is important that those

interested in the proposal on the

Ashland Ranger District, of the Custer

National Forest, participate at that time.

The Forest Service believes it is

important to give reviewers notice, at

this early stage, of several court rulings

related to public participation in the

environmental review process. First,

reviewers of a draft EIS must structure

their participation in the environmental

review of the proposal so that it is

meaningful and alerts the agency to the

reviewer’s position and contentions.

Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v.

NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978). Also,

environmental objections that could be

raised at the draft EIS stage but that are

not raised until after completion of the

final EIS may be waived or dismissed by

the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803

F.2d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and

Wisconsin Heritages, Inc, v. Harris, 490

F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980).

Because of these court rulings, it is very

important that those interested in this

proposed action participate by the close

of the 45-day comment period so that

substantive comments and objections

are made available to the Forest Service

at a time when it can meaningfully

consider and respond to them in the

final EIS. To assist the Forest Service in

identifying and considering issues and

concerns on the proposed actions,

comments on the draft EIS should be as

specific as possible. It is also helpful if

comments refer to specific pages or

chapters of the draft EIS. Comments

may also address the adequacy of the

draft EIS or merits of the alternatives

formulated and discussed in the

statement. (Reviewers may wish to refer

to the Council on Environmental

Quality Regulations for implementing

the procedural provisions of the

National Environmental Policy Act at 40

CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.)

The final EIS is schedules for

completion by December 2000. In the

final EIS, the Forest Service is required

to respond to substantive comments

received during the comment period for

the draft EIS. Nancy T. Curriden, Forest

Supervisor of the Custer National

Forest, is the responsible official. She

will decide which, if any, of the

proposed project alternatives will be

implemented. Her decision and reason

for the decisions will be documented in

the Record of Decision. That decision

will be subject to Forest Service appeal

regulations (36 CFR part 215).

57312 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 185 / Friday, September 22, 2000 / Notices

Dated: September 18, 2000.

Nancy T. Curriden,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 00–24366 Filed 9–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR

SEVERELY DISABLED

Procurement List; Additions and

Deletions

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From

People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled.

ACTION: Additions to and deletions from

the Procurement List.

SUMMARY: This action adds to the

Procurement List a commodity and

services to be furnished by nonprofit

agencies employing persons who are

blind or have other severe disabilities,

and deletes from the Procurement List

commodities previously furnished by

such agencies.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 23, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase

From People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800,

1421 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, Virginia 22202–3259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Louis R. Bartalot, (703) 603–7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June

16, July 28 and August 11, 2000, the

Committee for Purchase From People

Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled

published notices (65 FR 37757, 46425

and 49218) of proposed additions to and

deletion from the Procurement List:

Additions

After consideration of the material

presented to it concerning capability of

qualified nonprofit agencies to provide

the commodity and services and impact

of the additions on the current or most

recent contractors, the Committee has

determined that the commodity and

services listed below are suitable for

procurement by the Federal Government

under 41 U.S.C. 46–48c and 41 CFR 51–

2.4.

I certify that the following action will

not have a significant impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The major factors considered for this

certification were:

1. The action will not result in any

additional reporting, recordkeeping or

other compliance requirements for small

entities other than the small

organizations that will furnish the

commodity and services to the

Government.

2. The action will not have a severe

economic impact on current contractors

for the commodity and services.

3. The action will result in

authorizing small entities to furnish the

commodity and services to the

Government.

4. There are no known regulatory

alternatives which would accomplish

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in

connection with the commodity and

services proposed for addition to the

Procurement List.

Accordingly, the following

commodity and services are hereby

added to the Procurement List:

Commodity

Carrier, Entrenching Tool

8465–00–NSH–2000

Services

Grounds Maintenance, Department of

Veterans Affairs, Puget Sound Health

Care System, 1660 South Columbian

Way, Seattle, Washington

Janitorial/Custodial, Basewide, Naval

Submarine Base New London, Groton,

Connecticut

(49% of the total requirement)

Switchboard Operation, Defense Supply

Center—Richmond, Richmond, Virginia

Virtual Warehouse Operation, Department of

Transportation, Ardmore East Business

Center, 3341 Q 75th Avenue, Landover,

Maryland

This action does not affect current

contracts awarded prior to the effective

date of this addition or options that may

be exercised under those contracts.

Deletion

I certify that the following action will

not have a significant impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The major factors considered for this

certification were:

1. The action may not result in any

additional reporting, recordkeeping or

other compliance requirements for small

entities.

2. The action will not have a severe

economic impact on future contractors

for the commodities.

3. The action may result in

authorizing small entities to furnish the

commodities to the Government.

4. There are no known regulatory

alternatives which would accomplish

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in

connection with the commodities

deleted from the Procurement List.

After consideration of the relevant

matter presented, the Committee has

determined that the commodities listed

below is no longer suitable for

procurement by the Federal Government

under 41 U.S.C. 46–48c and 41 CFR 51–

2.4.

Accordingly, the following

commodities are hereby deleted from

the Procurement List:

Knife, Paring; Steak/Utility; Slicer

M.R. 870 (Paring)

M.R. 871 (Steak Utility)

M.R. 874 (Slicer)

Louis R. Bartalot,

Deputy Director (Operations).

[FR Doc. 00–24412 Filed 9–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6353–01–P

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR

SEVERELY DISABLED

Procurement List; Proposed Additions

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From

People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled.

ACTION: Proposed Additions to

Procurement List.

SUMMARY: The Committee has received

proposals to add to the Procurement List

commodities and a service to be

furnished by nonprofit agencies

employing persons who are blind or

have other severe disabilities.

COMMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED ON OR

BEFORE: October 23, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase

From People Who Are Blind or Severely

Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800,

1421 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, Virginia 22202–3259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Louis R. Bartalot (703) 603–7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

notice is published pursuant to 41

U.S.C. 47(a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–2.3. Its

purpose is to provide interested persons

an opportunity to submit comments on

the possible impact of the proposed

actions.

If the Committee approves the

proposed additions, all entities of the

Federal Government (except as

otherwise indicated) will be required to

procure the commodities and service

listed below from nonprofit agencies

employing persons who are blind or

have other severe disabilities.

I certify that the following action will

not have a significant impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The major factors considered for this

certification were:

1. The action will not result in any

additional reporting, recordkeeping or

other compliance requirements for small

entities other than the small

organizations that will furnish the