### 50023 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 159 / Friday, August 16, 2013 / Notices

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  For questions related to the Asian Longhorned Beetle Eradication Program, contact Dr. Robyn Rose, National Asian Longhorned Beetle Eradication Program Manager, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 137, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851–2283. For questions related to the environmental impact statement, contact Dr. Jim Warren, Environmental Protection Specialist, Environmental and Risk Analysis Services, PPD, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 149, Riverdale, MD 20737; (202) 316–3216.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  Background

The Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) (ALB) is a foreign wood-boring beetle that threatens a wide variety of hardwood trees in North America. The native range of ALB includes China and Korea. ALB is believed to have been introduced into the United States from wood pallets and other wood packing material accompanying cargo shipments from Asia. ALB was first discovered in the United States in August 1996 in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. Since then, ALB has been found in limited areas in New York and New Jersey, Illinois, Massachusetts, and most recently, in Clermont County, OH.

Areas where ALB has been found are quarantined in accordance with the regulations in 7 CFR 301.51–1 through 301.51–9. These regulations place restrictions on the movement of ALB host articles from the quarantined areas,thus helping to prevent the humanassisted spread of ALB. Within the quarantined areas, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) works to eradicate ALB, after which the quarantine can be removed.

To date, ALB has been eradicated from Chicago, IL; Hudson, Middlesex, and Union Counties, NJ; Islip, NY; and the boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island in New York. The infested areas in Massachusetts and Ohio are active eradication areas, and APHIS is still working to determine the extent of those infestations.

Current efforts to eradicate infestations in the two locations listed above include cutting, chipping or burning, and disposing by mulching of infested trees and high-risk host trees (ALB host trees that are located within a half-mile radius of infested trees). High-risk host trees that are not cut are treated with either trunk injections or soil injections at the base of the tree using the insecticide imidacloprid.

Under the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. ), Federal agencies must examine the potential environmental effects of proposed Federal actions and alternatives. We are planning to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to analyze the effects of a program to eradicate the Asian longhorned beetle from wherever it might occur in the United States. The EIS will examine the environmental effects of control alternatives available to the Agency, including a no action alternative. It will be used for planning and decisionmaking and to inform the public about the environmental effects of APHIS’ ALB eradication activities. It will also provide an overview of APHISactivities to which we can tier sitespecific analyses and environmental assessments if new ALB infestations are discovered in the United States.

We are requesting public comment to help us identify or confirm potential alternatives and environmental issues that should be examined in the EIS, as well as comments that identify other issues that should be examined in the
EIS.

The EIS will be prepared in accordance with: (1) NEPA, (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).

We have identified five alternatives for further examination in the EIS:

Take no action. Under the no action alternative, no eradication efforts would be undertaken by APHIS. However, APHIS would continue to implement quarantine restrictions.

Removal of infested trees. Under this alternative, APHIS would implement quarantine restrictions and would onlyremove trees infested with ALB. Highrisk host trees would not be removed or treated.

Full host removal. Under this alternative, APHIS would implement quarantine restrictions, remove infested host trees, and remove high-risk host trees up to a half mile from infested

trees.

Insecticide treatment. Under this alternative, APHIS would implement quarantine restrictions, remove infested host trees, and treat high-risk host trees with an insecticide up to a half mile from infested trees.

Integrated approach. Under this alternative, APHIS would implement quarantine restrictions, remove infested trees, and use a combination of removal and insecticide treatments of high-risk host trees. We have identified the following potential environmental impacts or issues for further examination in the
EIS:

• Effects on wildlife, including consideration of migratory bird species and changes in native wildlife habitat and populations.

Æ Effects on federally listed threatened and endangered species.

• Effects on soil, air, and water quality.

• Effects on forests and trees in residential areas.

• Effects on the wood product industry and other economic impacts, including impacts on the firewood industry and on property values.

• Effects on human health and safety.

• Effects on cultural and historic

resources.

We welcome comments on the proposed action, and on other alternatives and environmental impacts or issues that should be considered for further examination in the EIS.

All comments on this notice will be carefully considered in developing the final scope of the EIS. Upon completion of the draft EIS, a notice announcing its availability and an invitation to comment on it will be published in the Federal Register

.

Done in Washington, DC, this 12th day of August 2013. Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 2013–19957 Filed 8–15–13; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3410–34–P**

**DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE**

**Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service** 

**[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0053]**

**Importation of Fresh Oranges and Tangerines From Egypt Into the United**  **States**

**AGENCY :**  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

**ACTION :**  Notice.

**SUMMARY :**  We are advising the public of our decision to allow the importation of oranges and tangerines from Egypt. Based on the findings of a pest list and commodity import evaluation document, which we made available to the public for review and comment through a previous notice, we have concluded that the application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the pest risk associated with the importation of oranges and tangerines


### 50024 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 159 / Friday, August 16, 2013 / Notices

1 To view the notice, pest list, commodity import evaluation document, treatment evaluation document, and the comment we received, go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=
APHIS-2012-0053. 2 The Treatment Manual is available on the
Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import

_ export/plants/manuals/index.shtml or by contacting the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine, Manuals Unit, 92 Thomas Johnson Drive, Suite 200, Frederick, MD 21702. from Egypt. In addition, based on the findings of a treatment evaluation document, we are advising the public that we are adding a new treatment schedule in the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual that can be used to neutralize peach fruit fly (Bactrocera zonata) and Mediterranean fruit fly ( Ceratitis capitata) in oranges and tangerines.

**DATES :**  Effective Date: August 16, 2013.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Mr. Tony Roma  ́ n, Regulatory Policy Specialist, APHIS, PPQ, 4700 River Road Unit 156, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851–2242.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  Background

Under the regulations in ‘‘Subpart— Fruits and Vegetables’’ (7 CFR 319.56– 1 through 319.56–59), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) prohibits or restricts the importation of fruits and vegetables into the United States from certain parts of the world to prevent the introduction and dissemination of plant pests.

Section 319.56–4 contains a performance-based process for approving the importation of commodities that, based on the findings of a pest risk analysis, can be safely imported subject to one or more of the designated phytosanitary measures listed in paragraph (b) of that section.

In accordance with that process, we published a notice in the Federal Register on April 18, 2013 (78 FR 23208–23209, Docket No. APHIS–2012– 0053), 1 in which we announced the availability, for review and comment, of a list of pests associated with oranges and tangerines from Egypt and a commodity import evaluation document (CIED) that evaluates the risks associated with importation of fruit from Egypt into the United States.

Because of the time that had passed since importation of oranges from Egypt was suspended, APHIS prepared a pest list to identify pests of quarantine significance that could follow the pathway of importation of oranges and tangerines from Egypt. Based on the pest list, we then completed a CIED to identify phytosanitary measures that could be applied to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating the identified pests via the importation of oranges and tangerines from Egypt. We concluded that fresh oranges and tangerines can safely be imported into the United States from Egypt using one or more of the five designated phytosanitary measures listed in § 319.56–4(b). These measures are:

• The oranges and tangerines must be treated in accordance with 7 CFR part 305 for C. capitata and B. zonata; and

• The oranges and tangerines must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the national plant protection organization of Egypt stating that the consignment has begun or has undergone treatment for C. capitata and
B. zonata in accordance with 7 CFR part 305, with an additional declaration stating that the fruit in the consignment was inspected and found free of B.

zonata.

The phytosanitary treatments regulations contained in part 305 of 7 CFR chapter III set out standards for treatments required in parts 301, 318, and 319 of 7 CFR chapter III for fruits, vegetables, and other articles.

In § 305.2, paragraph (b) states that approved treatment schedules are set out in the Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) Treatment Manual. 2 Section 305.3 sets out a process for adding, revising, or removing treatment schedules in the PPQ Treatment Manual. In that section, paragraph (a) sets out the process for adding, revising, or removing treatment schedules when there is no immediate need to make a change.

The PPQ Treatment Manual does not currently provide a treatment schedule for B. zonata in oranges and tangerines. Therefore, in accordance with § 305.3(a)(1), the notice we published in the Federal Register on April 18, 2013, announced the availability of a new cold treatment schedule T107–l, described further in the treatment evaluation document (TED), that we determined to be effective against B.

zonata in oranges and tangerines.

In addition to B. zonata, Ceratitis capitata (Medfly) is the other pest of concern in oranges originating from Egypt. The new cold treatment schedule T107–l is more stringent than the treatment schedule approved for C. capitata in oranges and tangerines, T107–a, and therefore we have determined that the new cold treatment schedule is adequate to neutralize C. capitata as well as B. zonata.

We solicited comments on the notice, pest list, CIED, and TED for 60 days ending June 17, 2013. We received one comment by that date from a private citizen. The commenter agreed that cold treatment is an effective mitigation measure for peach fruit fly; however, the commenter expressed concern that administering treatment at the port of entry could be too late in the shipping process to avoid the spread of peach fruit flies to other fruits, further stating that any larvae in the fruit at the time of exportation could fully develop into an adult and migrate to other fruits while en route to the United States. The commenter recommended that all cold treatments be conducted prior to exportation from Egypt to prevent the spread of fruit flies during shipment.

We understand the commenter’s concerns; however, the fruit is shipped in refrigerated containers, which keeps the larvae from developing further. In addition, proper containment methods described in the general cold treatment requirements in § 305.6 are also required to prevent fruit flies from spreading during shipment. Specifically, paragraphs (d)(3) and (d)(6) of that section require fruit that may be cold treated to be safeguarded to prevent cross-contamination or mixing with other infested fruit. Furthermore, only the same type of fruit in the same type of packaging may be treated together in a container and a numbered seal must be placed on the doors of the loaded container which can only be removed at the port of destination by an official authorized by APHIS. These safeguards have been used for many years during the treatment of a wide variety of commodities for fruit flies, and we have found them to be effective.

Therefore, in accordance with § 305.3, we are announcing the Administrator’s decision to add the treatment described in the TED as it is an effective measure for neutralizing peach fruit fly and Medfly in oranges and tangerines. Furthermore, oranges and tangerines from Egypt may be imported into the United States subject to the requirements specified in the CIED.

The new treatment will be listed in the PPQ Treatment Manual, which is available at the Web address and mailing address in footnote 2 of this document.

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, and 7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.

Done in Washington, DC, this 12th day of August 2013. Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 2013–19958 Filed 8–15–13; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3410–34–P**