Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 183 / Friday, September 19, 2008 / Notices 54361 

The USDA has provided Federal 

leadership in protecting U.S. livestock 

health for more than 120 years. APHIS 

is authorized, under the Animal Health 

Protection Act (AHPA) (7 U.S.C. 8301 et 

seq.), to protect the health of U.S. 

livestock by preventing the introduction 

and spread of livestock diseases and 

pests into and within the United States. 

Based on that authority, APHIS may 

broadly consider the potential effects of 

animals with GE traits on the health of 

the overall U.S. livestock population, 

while FDA is more focused on the direct 

effects of genetic engineering on 

individual animals based on their 

authority under the FFDCA. Given these 

complementary authorities, APHIS and 

FDA have been discussing their 

respective roles in overseeing GE 

animals for some time. FDA’s release for 

public comment of its draft guidance on 

GE animals provides an excellent 

opportunity for APHIS to solicit public 

comment on the potential effects of 

animals with GE traits on U.S. livestock 

health. 

APHIS particularly seeks the 

following information: 

1. What research on GE animals is 

currently being conducted or planned 

for the future? 

2. What, if any, implications would 

activities such as the importation and 

interstate movement of such animals 

have for the health of the U.S. livestock 

population? 

3. What, if any, activities should 

APHIS consider with respect to U.S. 

livestock health under the AHPA that 

would complement the requirements 

and recommendations described in 

FDA’s draft guidance? 

APHIS welcomes comments and 

scientific and technical information and 

data relevant to these issues. We will 

consider all comments and information 

we receive in determining the 

appropriate role for APHIS with regard 

to GE animals and will continue to 

collaborate closely with FDA. 

This action has been determined to be 

significant for the purposes of Executive 

Order 12866 and, therefore, has been 

reviewed by the Office of Management 

and Budget. 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 8301–8317; 7 CFR 2.22, 

2.80, and 371. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 16th day of 

September 2008. 

Bruce Knight, 

Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory 

Programs. 

[FR Doc. E8–21977 Filed 9–18–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Food Safety and Inspection Service 

[Docket No. FSIS–2008–0032] 

Codex Alimentarius Commission: 2nd 

Session of the Codex ad hoc 

Intergovernmental Task Force on 

Antimicrobial Resistance 

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary 

for Food Safety, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Office of the Under 

Secretary for Food Safety, United States 

Department of Agriculture (USDA), and 

the Food and Drug Administration 

(FDA) are sponsoring a public meeting 

on September 25, 2008, to discuss the 

agenda items coming before the 2nd 

session of the Codex ad hoc 

Intergovernmental Task Force on 

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and to 

present draft U.S. positions on the 

agenda items. The 2nd session of the 

AMR will be held in Seoul, Korea, 

October 20–24, 2008. The Under 

Secretary and FDA recognize the 

importance of providing interested 

parties the opportunity to comment on 

the agenda items that will be discussed 

at this forthcoming session of AMR. 

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled 

for Thursday, September 25, 2008, from 

1 p.m. to 3 p.m. 

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be 

held at FDA, 7519 Standish Place, Room 

152, Rockville, MD. 

Documents related to the 2nd session 

of the AMR will be accessible via the 

World Wide Web at the following 

address: http:// 

www.codexalimentarius.net/ 

current.asp. 

For Further Information About the 2nd 

Session of the AMR Contact: U.S. 

Delegate, Dr. David White, Director, 

National Antimicrobial Resistance 

Monitoring System (NARMS), FDA, 

Center for Veterinary Medicine, Office 

of Research, 8401 Muirkirk Rd., Laurel, 

MD 20798, Phone: (301) 210–4181, 

E-mail: david.white@fda.hhs.gov. 

For Further Information About the 

Public Meeting Contact: Edith Kennard, 

Staff Officer, U.S. Codex Office, Food 

Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), 

Room 4861, South Building, 1400 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20250, Phone: (202) 

720–5261, Fax: (202) 720–3157, E-mail: 

edith.kennard@fsis.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Codex Alimentarius (Codex) was 

established in 1963 by two United 

Nations organizations, the Food and 

Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the 

World Health Organization (WHO). 

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 protect the health of consumers 

and ensure that fair practices are used 

in trade. 

The Codex ad hoc Intergovernmental 

Task Force on AMR was established by 

the 29th Session of the Codex 

Alimentarius Commission in 2006 to 

develop science-based guidance to be 

used to assess the risks to human health 

associated with the presence in food 

and feed, including aquaculture, and the 

transmission through food and feed of 

antimicrobial resistant microorganisms 

and antimicrobial resistance genes. The 

AMR Task Force would also consider 

appropriate risk management options to 

reduce such risk. The Task Force is 

hosted by the Republic of Korea. 

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public 

Meeting 

The following items on the agenda for 

the 2nd session of the AMR will be 

discussed during the public meeting: 

• Matters Referred to the Committee 

from Other Codex Bodies 

• Information on the Work by FAO, 

WHO, and the World Organization for 

Animal Health on Antimicrobial 

Resistance 

• Proposed Draft Risk Assessment 

Guidance Regarding Foodborne 

Antimicrobial Resistant Microorganisms 

(Report of the Working Group) 

• Proposed Draft Guidance on 

Creating Risk Profiles for Antimicrobial 

Resistant Foodborne Microorganisms for 

Setting Risk Assessment and 

Management Priorities (Report of the 

Working Group) 

• Proposed Draft Risk Management 

Guidance to Contain Foodborne 

Antimicrobial Resistant Microorganisms 

(Report of the Working Group) 

Each issue listed will be fully 

described in documents distributed, or 

to be distributed, by the Korean 

Secretariat to the meeting. Members of 

the public may access copies of these 

documents at http:// 

www.codexalimentarius.net/ 

current.asp. 

Public Meeting 

At the September 25, 2008, public 

meeting, draft U.S. positions on these 

agenda items will be described and 

discussed, and attendees will have the 

opportunity to pose questions and offer 

comments. Written comments may be 

offered at the meeting or sent to the U.S. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
54362 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 183 / Friday, September 19, 2008 / Notices 

Delegate to the Task Force on AMR, Dr. 

David White, at 

david.white@fda.hhs.gov. Written 

comments should state that they relate 

to activities of the 2nd session of the 

Task Force on AMR. 

Additional Public Notification 

Public awareness of all segments of 

rulemaking and policy development is 

important. Consequently, in an effort to 

ensure that minorities, women, and 

persons with disabilities are aware of 

this notice, FSIS will announce it online 

through the FSIS Web page located at 

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/ 

2008_Notices_Index/. FSIS will also 

make copies of this Federal Register 

publication available through the FSIS 

Constituent Update, which is used to 

provide information regarding FSIS 

policies, procedures, regulations, 

Federal Register notices, FSIS public 

meetings, and other types of information 

that could affect or would be of interest 

to constituents and stakeholders. The 

Update is communicated via Listserv, a 

free electronic mail subscription service 

for industry, trade groups, consumer 

interest groups, health professionals, 

and other individuals who have asked 

to be included. The Update is also 

available on the FSIS Web page. 

Through the Listserv and Web page, 

FSIS is able to provide information to a 

much broader and more diverse 

audience. In addition, FSIS offers an 

e-mail subscription service which 

provides automatic and customized 

access to selected food safety news and 

information. This service is available at 

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/ 

news_and_events/email_subscription/. 

Options range from recalls to export 

information to regulations, directives 

and notices. Customers can add or 

delete subscriptions themselves, and 

they have the option to password 

protect their accounts. 

Done at Washington, DC, on September 16, 

2008. 

Karen Hulebak, 

Acting U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius. 

[FR Doc. E8–22080 Filed 9–17–08; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3410–DM–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Information Collection; Day Use on 

Urban National Forests 

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 extension with no 

revision of a currently approved 

information collection, Day Use on the 

National Forests of Southern California. 

DATES: Comments must be received in 

writing on or before November 18, 2008 

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 Dr. 

Deborah J. Chavez, Pacific Southwest 

Research Station, 4955 Canyon Crest 

Drive, Riverside, CA 92507. Comments 

may also be submitted via facsimile to 

951–680–1501, or send an e-mail to 

dchavez@fs.fed.us. 

The public may inspect comments 

received at the Pacific Southwest 

Research Station’s Riverside Fire Lab at 

4955 Canyon Crest Drive, Riverside, CA 

during normal business hours. Visitors 

are encouraged to call ahead to 951– 

680–1500 to facilitate entry to the 

building. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Deborah J. Chavez, Pacific Southwest 

Research Station, 951–680–1558, e-mail 

to dchavez@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: Day Use on Urban Proximate 

National Forests. 

OMB Number: 0596–0129. 

Expiration Date of Approval: 07/31/ 

2009. 

Type of Request: Extension. 

Abstract: The Forest Service is 

seeking to renew OMB approval to 

collect information from visitors at 

outdoor recreation day-use sites 

(developed picnic areas, general forest 

day-use sites, off-road staging areas, 

trails, etc.) on urban-proximate national 

forests land. 

Users of urban-proximate national 

forests (national forests within 1 hour 

driving distance of 1 million or more 

people) come from a variety of ethnic/ 

racial, income, age, educational, and 

other socio-demographic backgrounds. 

The activities pursued, information 

sources utilized, and site attributes 

preferred are just some of the items 

affected by these differences. 

Past studies have provided baseline 

information, from which managers have 

made decisions, revised forest plans, 

and renovated/redesigned recreation 

sites. Additional information is 

necessary for the urban proximate 

national forest managers to validate 

previous results and maintain 

information regarding the continuously 

changing profile of the visitor 

population. Without this information, 

the Forest Service will be ill-equipped 

to implement changes in response to 

day use visitors’ needs and preferences. 

Sites, dates of data collection, and 

individuals participating in the study 

are selected randomly. Survey 

instruments are available in English and 

Spanish, and research teams are 

bilingual. Participation is voluntary and 

individuals provide responses to 

questions covering the following topics: 

• Socio-demographics. 

• National Forest visitation history 

and patterns. 

• Activity patterns. 

• Information and communication. 

• Site amenities/characteristics. 

• Perceptions about the environment 

and land uses. 

• General comments. 

The Agency has used previously 

collected data to create forest 

newspapers, add site renovations to 

existing picnic areas, and in forest 

planning. The Forest Service has 

presented previous survey results at 

local, national, and international 

meetings. The Agency has published 

collected data in various outlets. Future 

data collections under this OMB 

number will be utilized in a similar 

manner, as well as provide 

opportunities for comparisons of visitor 

profiles and use shifts over time. 

Dr. Deborah J. Chavez, of the Pacific 

Southwest Research Station, will 

evaluate and analyze the collected data. 

Consequences of not collecting these 

data include, but are not limited to: 

(a) Decreased service delivery due to 

decreased quality and breadth of 

information provided to resource 

managers regarding the sociodemographic profile of visitors, 

visitation history and patterns, 

information and communication, site 

amenities/characteristics, perceptions 

about the environment and land uses; 

(b) Decreased ability to continue and 

expand approved research work unit’s 

assigned study topics, such as 

understanding visitor profiles; 

(c) Increased response time for 

inquiries into topics from managers and 

university contacts; 

(d) Increased dependency on 

cooperator availability to carry out 

research unit mission; and 

(e) Loss of information represented in 

follow-up longitudinal studies. 

Estimate of Annual Burden: 15 

minutes. 

Type of Respondents: Individuals. 

Estimated Annual Number of 

Respondents: 600. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES