50588 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 167 / Wednesday, August 27, 2008 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

[Docket No. APHIS–2008–0079] 

Fiscal Year 2009 Veterinary 

Diagnostics Services User Fees and 

Agricultural Quarantine and Inspection 

User Fees 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice pertains to user 

fees charged for certain veterinary 

diagnostics services and to fees charged 

for agricultural quarantine and 

inspection services that are provided in 

connection with certain commercial 

vessels, commercial trucks, loaded 

commercial railroad cars, commercial 

aircraft, and international airline 

passengers arriving at ports in the 

Customs territory of the United States. 

The purpose of this notice is to remind 

the public of the user fees for fiscal year 

2009 (October 1, 2008, through 

September 30, 2009). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information concerning veterinary 

diagnostic program operations, contact 

Dr. Elizabeth Lautner, Director, National 

Veterinary Services Laboratories, VS, 

APHIS, 1800 Dayton Avenue, Ames, IA 

50010; (515) 663–7301. 

For information on Agricultural 

Quarantine program operations, contact 

Mr. William E. Thomas, Director for 

Quarantine Policy, Analysis, and 

Support, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road 

Unit 60, Riverdale, MD 20737–1231; 

(301) 734–5214. 

For information concerning user fee 

rate development, contact Mrs. Kris 

Caraher, Section Head, User Fees 

Section, Financial Management 

Division, MRPBS, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 55, Riverdale, MD20737–

1232; (301) 734–0882. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Veterinary Diagnostic Services User 

Fees 

User fees to reimburse APHIS for the 

costs of providing veterinary diagnostic 

services are contained in 9 CFR part 130 

(referred to below as the regulations). 

These user fees are authorized by 

section 2509(c) of the Food, Agriculture, 

Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, as 

amended (21 U.S.C. 136a), which 

provides that the Secretary of 

Agriculture may, among other things, 

prescribe regulations and collect fees to 

recover the costs of veterinary 

diagnostics relating to the control and 

eradication of communicable diseases of 

livestock and poultry within the United 

States. 

In a final rule published in the 

Federal Register on December 19, 2007 

(72 FR 71744–71750, Docket No. 

APHIS–2006–0161), and effective 

January 18, 2008, we established, for 

fiscal years 2008 through 2012 and 

beyond, user fees for certain veterinary 

diagnostic services, including certain 

diagnostic tests, reagents, and other 

veterinary diagnostic materials and 

services. Veterinary diagnostics is the 

work performed in a laboratory to 

determine whether a disease-causing 

organism or chemical agent is present in 

body tissues or cells and, if so, to 

identify those organisms or agents. 

Services in this category include: (1) 

Performing identification, serology, and 

pathobiology tests and providing 

diagnostic reagents and other veterinary 

diagnostic materials and services for the 

National Veterinary Services Laboratory 

(NVSL) in Ames, IA; and (2) performing 

laboratory tests and providing reagents 

and other veterinary diagnostic 

materials and services at the NVSL 

Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic 

Laboratory (NVSL FADDL) in 

Greenport, NY. 

APHIS veterinary diagnostic user fees 

fall into six categories: 

(1) Laboratory tests, reagents, and 

other veterinary diagnostic services 

performed at NVSL FADDL; 

(2) Laboratory tests performed as part 

of isolation and identification testing at 

NVSL in Ames or other authorized sites; 

(3) Laboratory tests performed as part 

of serology testing at NVSL in Ames or 

other authorized sites; 

(4) Laboratory tests performed at the 

pathobiology laboratory at NVSL in 

Ames or other authorized sites; 

(5) Diagnostic reagents produced at 

NVSL in Ames or other authorized sites; 

and 

(6) Other veterinary diagnostic 

services or materials provided at NVSL 

in Ames. 

As specified in § 130.15(a), the user 

fees for bacteriology isolation and 

identification tests performed at NVSL 

(excluding FADDL) or other authorized 

sites for fiscal year 2009 are as follows: 

Test Unit User fee 

Bacterial identification, automated ............................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ $54.00 

Bacterial identification, non-automated ....................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ 92.00 

Bacterial isolation ......................................................................................................................................... Sample ...................... 37.00 

Bacterial serotyping, all other ...................................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ 56.00 

Bacterial serotyping, Pasteurella multocida ................................................................................................ Isolate ........................ 19.00 

Bacterial serotyping, Salmonella ................................................................................................................. Isolate ........................ 37.00 

Bacterial toxin typing ................................................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ 123.00 

Bacteriology requiring special characterization ........................................................................................... Test ........................... 94.00 

DNA fingerprinting ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 61.00 

DNA probe ................................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 85.00 

Fluorescent antibody ................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 19.00 

Mycobacterium identification (biochemical) ................................................................................................. Isolate ........................ 117.00 

Mycobacterium identification (gas chromatography) ................................................................................... Procedure .................. 99.00 

Mycobacterium isolation, animal inoculations ............................................................................................. Submission ................ 852.00 

Mycobacterium isolation, all other ............................................................................................................... Submission ................ 154.00 

Mycobacterium paratuberculosis isolation ................................................................................................... Submission ................ 74.00 

Phage typing, all other ................................................................................................................................. Isolate ........................ 43.00 

Phage typing, Salmonella enteritidis ........................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ 24.00 

As specified in § 130.15(b), the user 

fees for virology identification tests 

performed at NVSL (excluding FADDL) 

or other authorized sites for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 


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Test Unit User fee 

Fluorescent antibody tissue section ............................................................................................................ Test ........................... $30.00 

Virus isolation .............................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 49.00 

As specified in § 130.16(a), the user 

fees for bacteriology serology tests 

performed at NVSL (excluding FADDL) 

or other authorized sites for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Test Unit User fee 

Brucella ring (BRT) ...................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... $37.00 

Brucella ring, heat inactivated (HIRT) ......................................................................................................... Test ........................... 37.00 

Brucella ring, serial (Serial BRT) ................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 56.00 

Buffered acidified plate antigen presumptive .............................................................................................. Test ........................... 7.25 

Card ............................................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 4.00 

Complement fixation .................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 17.00 

Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay ......................................................................................................... Test ........................... 17.00 

Indirect fluorescent antibody ........................................................................................................................ Test ........................... 15.00 

Microscopic agglutination—includes up to 5 serovars ................................................................................ Sample ...................... 24.00 

Microscopic agglutination—each serovar in excess of 5 serovars ............................................................. Sample ...................... 4.50 

Particle concentration fluorescent immunoassay (PCFIA) .......................................................................... Test ........................... 37.00 

Plate ............................................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 7.25 

Rapid automated presumptive ..................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 7.00 

Rivanol ......................................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 7.25 

Tube agglutination ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 7.25 

As specified in § 130.16(b), the user 

fees for virology serology tests 

performed at NVSL (excluding FADDL) 

or other authorized sites for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Test Unit User fee 

Agar gel immunodiffusion ............................................................................................................................ Test ........................... $17.00 

Complement fixation .................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 17.00 

Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay ......................................................................................................... Test ........................... 17.00 

Hemagglutination inhibition .......................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 15.00 

Indirect fluorescent antibody ........................................................................................................................ Test ........................... 15.00 

Latex agglutination ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 17.00 

Peroxidase linked antibody .......................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 16.00 

Plaque reduction neutralization ................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 18.00 

Rabies fluorescent antibody neutralization .................................................................................................. Test ........................... 46.00 

Virus neutralization ...................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 13.00 

As specified in § 130.17(a), the user 

fees for veterinary diagnostic tests 

performed at the Pathobiology 

Laboratory at NVSL (excluding FADDL) 

or other authorized sites for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Test Unit User fee 

Aflatoxin quantitation ................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... $31.00 

Aflatoxin screen ........................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 29.00 

Agar gel immunodiffusion spp. identification ............................................................................................... Test ........................... 13.00 

Antibiotic (bioautography) quantitation ........................................................................................................ Test ........................... 67.00 

Antibiotic (bioautography) screen ................................................................................................................ Test ........................... 122.00 

Antibiotic inhibition ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 67.00 

Arsenic ......................................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 18.00 

Ergot alkaloid screen ................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 67.00 

Ergot alkaloid confirmation .......................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 88.00 

Feed microscopy ......................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 67.00 

Fumonisin only ............................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 38.00 

Gossypol ...................................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 100.00 

Mercury ........................................................................................................................................................ Test ........................... 148.00 

Metals screen .............................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 45.00 

Metals single element confirmation ............................................................................................................. Test ........................... 13.00 

Mycotoxin: aflatoxin-liver ............................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 122.00 

Mycotoxin screen ......................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 49.00 

Nitrate/nitrite ................................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 67.00 

Organic compound confirmation .................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 90.00 

Organic compound screen .......................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 155.00 

Parasitology ................................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 29.00 


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Test Unit User fee 

Pesticide quantitation ................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 135.00 

Pesticide screen .......................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 62.00 

pH ................................................................................................................................................................ Test ........................... 27.00 

Plate cylinder ............................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 100.00 

Selenium ...................................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 45.00 

Silicate/carbonate disinfectant ..................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 67.00 

Temperature disks ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 133.00 

Toxicant quantitation, other ......................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 112.00 

Toxicant screen, other ................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 33.00 

Vomitoxin only ............................................................................................................................................. Test ........................... 54.00 

Water activity ............................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 33.00 

Zearaleone quantitation ............................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 54.00 

Zearaleone screen ....................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 29.00 

As specified in § 130.18(a), the user 

fees for bacteriology reagents produced 

by the Diagnostic Bacteriology 

Laboratory at NVSL (excluding FADDL) 

or other authorized sites for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Reagent Unit User fee 

Anaplasma card test antigen ....................................................................................................................... 2 mL .......................... $97.00 

Anaplasma card test kit without antigen ..................................................................................................... Kit .............................. 130.00 

Anaplasma CF antigen ................................................................................................................................ 2 mL .......................... 46.00 

Anaplasma stabilate .................................................................................................................................... 4.5 mL ....................... 178.00 

Avian origin bacterial antiserums ................................................................................................................ 1 mL .......................... 49.00 

Bacterial agglutinating antigens other than brucella and salmonella pullorum ........................................... 5 mL .......................... 55.00 

Bacterial conjugates .................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 99.00 

Bacterial disease CF antigens, all other ..................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 30.00 

Bacterial ELISA antigens ............................................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 30.00 

Bacterial or protozoal antiserums, all other ................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 61.00 

Bacterial reagent culture 1 ........................................................................................................................... Culture ....................... 74.00 

Bacterial reference culture 2 ........................................................................................................................ Culture ....................... 233.00 

Bacteriophage reference culture ................................................................................................................. Culture ....................... 176.00 

Bovine serum factor ..................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 18.00 

Brucella abortus CF antigen ........................................................................................................................ 60 mL ........................ 154.00 

Brucella agglutination antigens, all other .................................................................................................... 60 mL ........................ 154.00 

Brucella buffered plate antigen .................................................................................................................... 60 mL ........................ 176.00 

Brucella canis tube antigen ......................................................................................................................... 25 mL ........................ 116.00 

Brucella card test antigen (packaged) ......................................................................................................... Package .................... 92.00 

Brucella card test kit without antigen .......................................................................................................... Kit .............................. 114.00 

Brucella cells ................................................................................................................................................ Gram ......................... 19.00 

Brucella cells, dried ..................................................................................................................................... Pellet ......................... 6.00 

Brucella ring test antigen ............................................................................................................................. 60 mL ........................ 246.00 

Brucella rivanol solution ............................................................................................................................... 60 mL ........................ 30.00 

Dourine CF antigen ..................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 91.00 

Dourine stabilate .......................................................................................................................................... 4.5 mL ....................... 111.00 

Equine and bovine origin babesia species antiserums ............................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 130.00 

Equine negative control CF antigen ............................................................................................................ 1 mL .......................... 283.00 

Flazo-orange ................................................................................................................................................ 3 mL .......................... 13.00 

Glanders CF antigen ................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 79.00 

Hemoparasitic disease CF antigens, all other ............................................................................................ 1 mL .......................... 553.00 

Leptospira transport medium ....................................................................................................................... 10 mL ........................ 4.50 

Monoclonal antibody .................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 97.00 

Mycobacterium spp. old tuberculin .............................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 24.00 

Mycobacterium spp. PPD ............................................................................................................................ 1 mL .......................... 19.00 

Mycoplasma hemagglutination antigens ..................................................................................................... 5 mL .......................... 184.00 

Negative control serums .............................................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 19.00 

Rabbit origin bacterial antiserum ................................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 53.00 

Salmonella pullorum microagglutination antigen ......................................................................................... 5 mL .......................... 16.00 

Stabilates, all other ...................................................................................................................................... 4.5 mL ....................... 690.00 

1A reagent culture is a bacterial culture that has been subcultured one or more times after being tested for purity and identity. It is intended for 

use as a reagent with a diagnostic test such as the leptospiral agglutination test. 2A reference culture is a bacterial culture that has been thoroughly tested for purity and identity. It should be suitable as a master seed for future cultures. 

As specified in § 130.18(b), the user 

fees for virology reagents produced by 

the Diagnostic Virology Laboratory at 

NVSL (excluding FADDL) or other 

authorized sites for fiscal year 2009 are 

as follows: 

Reagent Unit User fee 

Antigen, except avian influenza and chlamydia psittaci antigens, any ....................................................... 2 mL .......................... $62.00 


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Reagent Unit User fee 

Avian antiserum except avian influenza antiserum, any ............................................................................. 2 mL .......................... 49.00 

Avian influenza antigen, any ....................................................................................................................... 2 mL .......................... 34.00 

Avian influenza antiserum, any ................................................................................................................... 6 mL .......................... 105.00 

Bovine or ovine serum, any ......................................................................................................................... 2 mL .......................... 130.00 

Cell culture ................................................................................................................................................... Flask .......................... 154.00 

Chlamydia psittaci spp. of origin monoclonal antibody panel ..................................................................... Panel ......................... 96.00 

Conjugate, any ............................................................................................................................................. 1 mL .......................... 75.00 

Diluted positive control serum, any ............................................................................................................. 2 mL .......................... 25.00 

Equine antiserum, any ................................................................................................................................. 2 mL .......................... 46.00 

Monoclonal antibody .................................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 104.00 

Other spp. antiserum, any ........................................................................................................................... 1 mL .......................... 52.00 

Porcine antiserum, any ................................................................................................................................ 2 mL .......................... 108.00 

Porcine tissue sets ...................................................................................................................................... Tissue set .................. 157.00 

Positive control tissues, all .......................................................................................................................... 2 cm 2 section ............ 62.00 

Rabbit origin antiserum ................................................................................................................................ 1 mL .......................... 53.00 

Reference virus, any .................................................................................................................................... 0.6 mL ....................... 184.00 

Viruses (except reference viruses), chlamydia psittaci agent or chlamydia psittaci antigen, any .............. 0.6 mL ....................... 31.00 

As specified in § 130.19(a), the user 

fees for other veterinary diagnostic 

services or materials available from 

NVSL (excluding FADDL) for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Service Unit User fee 

Antimicrobial susceptibility test .................................................................................................................... Isolate ........................ $107.00 

Avian safety test .......................................................................................................................................... Test ........................... 4,090.00 

Check tests, culture ..................................................................................................................................... Kit 1 ............................ 179.00 

Check tests, serology .................................................................................................................................. Kit 1 ............................ 369.00 

Fetal bovine serum safety test .................................................................................................................... Verification ................. 1,122.00 

Hourly user fees 2 ........................................................................................................................................ Hour ........................... 104.00 

Quarter hour ................................................................................................................................................ Quarter hour .............. 26.00 

Minimum ...................................................................................................................................................... .................................... 31.00 

Manual, brucellosis culture .......................................................................................................................... 1 copy ........................ 117.00 

Manual, tuberculosis culture (English or Spanish) ...................................................................................... 1 copy ........................ 176.00 

Manual, Veterinary mycology ...................................................................................................................... 1 copy ........................ 176.00 

Manuals or standard operating procedure (SOP), all other ........................................................................ 1 copy ........................ 35.00 

Manuals or SOP, per page .......................................................................................................................... 1 page ....................... 2.50 

Training (school or technical assistance) .................................................................................................... Per person per day ... 339.00 

1Any reagents required for the check test will be charged separately. 

2For veterinary diagnostic services for which there is no flat user fee the hourly rate user fee will be calculated for the actual time required to 

provide the service. 

Agricultural Quarantine and Inspection 

Services User Fees 

User fees to reimburse APHIS for the 

costs of providing inspection of certain 

commercial conveyances are found in 7 

CFR part 354 (referred to below as the 

regulations). These user fees are 

authorized by Section 2509(a) of the 

Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and 

Trade Act of 1990 (21 U.S.C. 136a), 

which authorizes APHIS to collect user 

fees for agricultural quarantine and 

inspection (AQI) services. 

In a final rule published in the 

Federal Register on December 9, 2004 

(69 FR 71660–71683, Docket No. 04–

042–1), and effective January 1, 2005, 

we established, for fiscal years 2005 

through 2010, user fees for each of the 

types of conveyances or persons to 

whom AQI services are provided, i.e., 

commercial vessels (watercraft), 

commercial trucks, loaded commercial 

railroad cars, commercial aircraft, and 

international airline passengers. The 

regulations provide specific information 

regarding the applicability of, and 

exceptions to, AQI user fees. As 

specified in 7 CFR 354.3, the user fees 

for these AQI services for fiscal year 

2009 are as follows: 

Service Unit Amount 

Inspection of commercial vessels of 100 net tons or more (see 7 CFR 354.3(b)) .................................... Per entry 1 .................. $494.00 

Inspection of commercial trucks (see 7 CFR 354.3(c)) .............................................................................. Per entry 2 .................. 5.25 

Inspection of commercial railroad cars (see 7 CFR 354.3(d)) .................................................................... Per entry 3 .................. 7.75 

Inspection of commercial aircraft (see 7 CFR 354.3(e)) ............................................................................. Per entry .................... 70.75 

Inspection of international aircraft passengers (see 7 CFR 354.3(f)) ......................................................... Per entry .................... 5.00 

1 Not to exceed 15 payments in a calendar year (i.e., no additional fee will be charged for a 16th or subsequent arrival in a calendar year). 2A prepaid AQI permit valid for 1 calendar year may be obtained for an amount 20 times the AQI use fee for each arrival ($105 from October 

1, 2008, through September 30, 2009). 3The AQI user fee may be prepaid for all arrival of a commercial railroad car during a calendar year for an amount 20 times the AQI use fee 

for each arrival ($155 from October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009). 


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50592 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 167 / Wednesday, August 27, 2008 / Notices 

Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of 

August, 2008. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–19864 Filed 8–26–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Rural Utilities Service 

Southern Maryland Electric 

Cooperative; Notice of Intent To Hold 

a Public Scoping Meeting and Prepare 

an Environmental Assessment 

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to hold a public 

scoping meeting and prepare an 

Environmental Assessment. 

SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service 

(RUS), an agency delivering the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture’s Rural 

Development Utilities Programs, 

hereinafter referred to as Rural 

Development and/or Agency, intends to 

hold a public scoping meeting and 

prepare an Environmental Assessment 

(EA) in connection with potential 

impacts related to a proposal by 

Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative 

(SMECO), with headquarters in 

Hughesville, Maryland. The proposal 

consists of the construction of 

approximately 30 miles of 230 kilovolt 

(kV) transmission line, a new 230/69 kV 

switching station, a 230/69 kV 

switching station expansion, and a river 

crossing located in Calvert and St. 

Mary’s Counties in Maryland. 

DATES: USDA Rural Development will 

conduct a scoping meeting in an open 

house format, seeking the input of the 

public and other interested parties. The 

meeting will be held from 5 p.m. until 

8 p.m., on September 11, 2008. 

ADDRESSES: The September 11, 2008 

meeting will be held at the SMECO 

office located at 901 Dares Beach Road 

in Prince Frederick, Maryland. The 

SMECO phone number is 888–440–

3311. 

An Electric Alternatives Evaluation 

and Macro Corridor Study Report will 

be available at the public scoping 

meeting, at USDA Rural Development’s 

address provided in this notice, at their 

Web site: http://www.usda.gov/rus/ 

water/ees/ea.htm, and at SMECO, 15035 

Burnt Store Road, Hughesville, 

Maryland 20637. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stephanie A. Strength, Environmental 

Protection Specialist, USDA Rural 

Development, Utilities Programs, 

Engineering and Environmental Staff, 

1400 Independence Ave., SW., Stop 

1571, Washington, DC 20250, or e-mail 

stephanie.strength@wdc.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Southern 

Maryland Electric Cooperative proposes 

to construct a 230 kV transmission line 

between the existing Holland Cliff 

Switching Station in Calvert County to 

the existing Hewitt Road Switching 

Station in St. Mary’s County, Maryland. 

The proposal comprises five segments 

and includes (1) The installation of 

approximately 20 miles of new 230 kV 

single pole, double-circuit transmission 

line from the Holland Cliff switching 

station to a new switching station 

located in Southern Calvert; (2) the 

installation of the new Southern Calvert 

230/69 kV switching station; (3) the 

installation of approximately 10 miles of 

new 230 kV single pole, double-circuit 

transmission line from the new 

Southern Calvert switching station to 

the existing Hewitt Road switching 

station; (4) the installation of 

approximately 2 miles of 230 kV 

underground transmission cable circuit 

across the lower Patuxent River; and (5) 

the expansion of the existing 230 kV 

ring bus at Hewitt Road switching 

station to accommodate the new 230 kV 

transmission line from Southern 

Calvert. Throughout the right-of-way, 

the existing 69 kV poles will be 

removed and the existing 69 kV 

conductors will be installed on the new 

230 kV poles along with the new 230 kV 

conductors. This configuration will 

allow the use of the existing 69 kV 

transmission line right-of-way and 

preclude the need for additional rightof-way land acquisition. 

The proposed location of the new 

switching station will be in southern 

Calvert County, possibly near Lusby, 

Maryland, along the existing 69 kV 

transmission line right-of-way. The site 

is anticipated to be approximately 25 

acres to accommodate the switching 

station equipment and a buffer. 

Switching station sites will be further 

assessed in the Environmental 

Assessment. 

The Patuxent River crossing will be 

approximately two miles, in the vicinity 

of the existing 69 kV underground 

transmission line, near the Thomas 

Johnson Bridge. Alternative crossing 

locations as well as construction 

alternatives were considered in order to 

improve maintenance capabilities, 

mitigate environmental impact, and 

reduce proposal costs. Alternatives 

include (1) installation of a submarine 

cable jetted into the bottom of the 

Patuxent River, and (2) attaching the 

230 kV underground cable circuit to the 

existing bridge or a future bridge 

planned near the existing Thomas 

Johnson Bridge. Construction of the 

proposal is anticipated for completion 

in 2015. 

Government agencies, private 

organizations, and the public are invited 

to participate in the planning and 

analysis of the proposed project. 

Representatives from USDA Rural 

Development and Southern Maryland 

Electric Cooperative will be available at 

the scoping meeting to discuss the 

environmental review process, describe 

the proposal, answer questions, and 

receive comments. Comments regarding 

the proposed action may be submitted 

(orally or in writing) at the public 

scoping meeting or in writing by 

October 11, 2008 at the USDA Rural 

Development address provided in this 

notice. 

From information provided in the 

Electric Alternatives Evaluation and 

Macro Corridor Study Report, from 

government agencies, private 

organizations, and the public, Southern 

Maryland Electric Cooperative will 

prepare an environmental analysis to be 

submitted to USDA Rural Development 

for review. USDA Rural Development 

will review the environmental analysis 

and determine the significance of the 

impacts of the proposal. If accepted, the 

document will be adopted as the 

environmental assessment (EA) for the 

proposal. USDA Rural Development’s 

EA would be available for review and 

comment for 30 days. Should the USDA 

Rural Development determine, based on 

the EA for the proposal, that impacts 

associated with the construction and 

operation of the proposal would not 

have a significant environmental 

impact, it will prepare a finding of no 

significant impact (FONSI). Public 

notification of a FONSI would be 

published in the Federal Register and in 

newspapers with circulation in the 

proposal area. 

Any final action by USDA Rural 

Development related to the proposal 

would be subject to, and contingent 

upon, compliance with environmental 

review requirements as prescribed by 

the USDA Rural Development’ s 

environmental policies and procedures 

(7 CFR 1794). 

Dated: August 22, 2008. 

Mark S. Plank, 

Director, Engineering and Environmental 

Staff, USDA/Rural Development/Utilities 

Programs. 

[FR Doc. E8–19792 Filed 8–26–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–15–P 


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