[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 232 (Wednesday, December 3, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 71703-71705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-28487]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 319

[Docket No. APHIS-2014-0041]
RIN 0579-AE01


Importation of Orchids in Growing Media From Taiwan

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend the regulations governing the 
importation of plants and plant products to add orchid plants of the 
genus Oncidium from Taiwan to the list of plants that may be imported 
into the United States in an approved growing medium, subject to 
specified growing, inspection, and certification requirements. We are 
taking this action in response to a request from the Taiwanese 
Government and after determining that the plants could be imported, 
under certain conditions, without resulting in the introduction into, 
or the dissemination within, the United States of a plant pest or 
noxious weed.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
February 2, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0041.
    <bullet> Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2014-0041, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may 
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-
0041 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Heather Coady, Regulatory Policy 
Specialist, Plants for Planting Policy, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road 
Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851-2076.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The regulations in 7 CFR part 319 prohibit or restrict the 
importation into the United States of certain plants and plant products 
to prevent the introduction of plant pests and noxious weeds. The 
regulations in ``Subpart--Plants for Planting,'' Sec. Sec.  319.37 
through 319.37-14 (referred to below as the regulations) contain, among 
other things, prohibitions and restrictions on the importation of 
plants, plant parts, and seeds for propagation.
    Paragraph (a) of Sec.  319.37-8 of the regulations requires, with 
certain exceptions, that plants offered for importation into the United 
States be free of sand, soil, earth, and other growing media. This 
requirement is intended to help prevent the introduction of plant pests 
that might be present in the growing media; the exceptions to the 
requirement take into account factors that mitigate that plant pest 
risk. Those exceptions, which are found in paragraphs (b) through (e) 
of Sec.  319.37-8, consider either the origin of the plants and growing 
media (paragraph (b)), the nature of the growing media (paragraphs (c) 
and (d)), or the use of a combination of growing conditions, approved 
media, inspections, and other requirements (paragraph (e)).
    Paragraph (e) of Sec.  319.37-8 provides conditions under which 
certain plants established in growing media may be imported into the 
United States. In addition to specifying the types of plants that may 
be imported Sec.  319.37-8(e) also:
    <bullet> Specifies the types of growing media that may be used;
    <bullet> Requires plants to be grown in accordance with written 
agreements between the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 
(APHIS) and the national plant protection organization (NPPO) of the 
country where the plants are grown and between the foreign NPPO and the 
grower;
    <bullet> Requires the plants to be rooted and grown in a greenhouse 
that meets certain requirements for pest exclusion and that is used 
only for plants being grown in compliance with Sec.  319.37-8(e);
    <bullet> Restricts the source of the seeds or parent plants used to 
produce the plants, and requires grow-out or treatment of parent plants 
imported into the exporting country from another country;
    <bullet> Specifies the sources of water that may be used on the 
plants, the height of the benches on which the plants must be grown, 
and the conditions under which the plants must be stored and packaged; 
and

[[Page 71704]]

    <bullet> Requires that the plants be inspected in the greenhouse 
and found free of evidence of plant pests no more than 30 days prior to 
the exportation of the plants.
    A phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of the country in 
which the plants were grown that declares that the above conditions 
have been met must accompany the plants at the time of importation. 
These conditions have been used successfully to mitigate the risk of 
pest introduction associated with the importation into the United 
States of approved plants established in growing media.
    Currently, orchid plants of genus Oncidium spp. may only be 
imported into the United States as bare root plants, in accordance with 
Sec.  319.37-2. The Government of Taiwan has requested that importation 
into the United States of those plants be allowed under the provisions 
of Sec.  319.37-8.
    The regulations in Sec.  319.37-8(g) provide that requests such as 
the one made by the Government of Taiwan be evaluated by APHIS using 
specific pest risk evaluation standards that are based on pest risk 
analysis (PRA) guidelines established by the International Plant 
Protection Convention of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture 
Organization. Such analyses are conducted to determine the plant pest 
risks associated with each requested plant article and to determine 
whether or not APHIS should propose to allow the requested plant 
article established in growing media to be imported into the United 
States. In accordance with Sec.  319.37-8(g), APHIS has conducted the 
required PRA, which can be viewed on the Internet on the 
Regulations.gov Web site or in our reading room.\1\
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    \1\ Instructions on accessing Regulations.gov and information on 
the location and hours of the reading room may be found at the 
beginning of this document under ADDRESSES. You may also request 
paper copies of the risk analysis by calling or writing the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
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    In the PRA, titled ``Importation of Oncidium spp. in growing media 
from Taiwan into the United States,'' APHIS determined that 14 
quarantine pests present in Taiwan could potentially follow the import 
pathway:
    <bullet> Tetranychus kanzawai Kishida, a spider mite.
    <bullet> Amsacta lactinea Cramer, a tiger moth.
    <bullet> Spodoptera litura (Fabricius), the Oriental leafworm moth.
    <bullet> Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood, the chili thrips.
    <bullet> Thrips palmi Karny, the melon thrips.
    <bullet> Lissachatina fulica (Bowdich), a snail.
    <bullet> Deroceras laeve (Muller), the marsh slug.
    <bullet> Parmarion martensi Simroth, a semislug.
    <bullet> Petalochlamys vesta (Pfeiffer), a snail.
    <bullet> Meghimatium bilineatus (Benson), a slug.
    <bullet> Meghimatium pictum Stoliczka, a slug.
    <bullet> Laevicaulis alte (F[eacute]russac), the tropical 
leatherleaf.
    <bullet> Pectobacterium cypripedii (Hori) Brenner et al., a 
bacterial leaf-disease of orchids.
    <bullet> Bipolaris zizaniae (Y. Nisik.) Shoemaker, a fungus.
    A quarantine pest is defined in Sec.  319.37-1 of the regulations 
as a pest of potential economic importance to the area endangered 
thereby and not yet present there, or present but not widely 
distributed and being officially controlled. Plant pest risk potentials 
associated with the importation of Oncidium spp. from Taiwan into the 
United States were derived by estimating the consequences and 
likelihood of introduction of each quarantine pest into the United 
States and ranking the risk potential as high, medium, or low. The PRA 
determined that 12 of these 14 pests--T. kanzawai, A. lactinea, S. 
litura, S. dorsalis, T. palmi, L. fulica, D. laeve, P. martensi, P. 
vesta, M. bilineatus, M. pictum, and L. alte--pose a high risk of 
following the pathway. The remaining pests--P. cypripedii and B. 
zizaniae--were rated as having a medium risk potential. However, the 
PRA acknowledged that the risk presented by these plant pests is 
consistent with any propagative epiphytic orchid materials and pest 
associations. Further, it is important to note that those plant pest 
risks were identified in the absence of the mitigative effects of the 
requirements in Sec.  319.37-8(e), which are designed to establish and 
maintain a pest-free production environment and ensure the use of pest-
free seeds or parent plants. Given that, the PRA concluded that the 
safeguards in Sec.  319.37-8(e) would allow the safe importation of 
Oncidium spp. from Taiwan provided that the plants are established in 
an approved growing medium and meet all other applicable conditions of 
Sec.  319.37-8(e). This determination is based on the findings of the 
PRA and the Secretary's judgment that the application of the measures 
required under Sec.  319.37-8(e) will prevent the introduction or 
dissemination of plant pests into the United States.
    Accordingly, we are proposing to amend the regulations in Sec.  
319.37-8(e) by adding Oncidium spp. from Taiwan to the list of plants 
established in an approved growing medium that may be imported into the 
United States. The plants would have to be produced, handled, and 
imported in accordance with the requirements of Sec.  319.37-8(e) and 
be accompanied at the time of importation by a phytosanitary 
certificate issued by the NPPO of Taiwan that declares that those 
requirements have been met.

Miscellaneous

    In ``Subpart--Plants for Planting,'' there is an incorrect 
reference in footnotes 9 and 10. Currently, both footnotes 9 and 10 
refer the reader to footnote 9 when they should refer instead to 
footnote 8. In a previous action we redesignated some of the footnotes 
in ``Subpart--Plants for Planting'' and neglected to update the 
references to other footnotes. We are therefore proposing to revise 
footnotes 9 and 10 to refer the reader to footnote 8.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been 
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget.
    In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, we have analyzed 
the potential economic effects of this action on small entities. The 
analysis is summarized below. Copies of the full analysis are available 
by contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
or on the Regulations.gov Web site (see ADDRESSES above for 
instructions for accessing Regulations.gov).
    This proposed rule would amend the regulations to include Oncidium 
spp. from Taiwan on the list of plants that may enter the United States 
established in approved growing media, subject to specified growing, 
inspection, and certification requirements. Eliminating the requirement 
that Oncidium spp. from Taiwan must be bare-rooted is expected to 
increase the number and quality of these plants imported by U.S. 
growers, who then finish the plants for the retail market. It is also 
expected to reduce the production time for growers. However, gains due 
to improved product quality and reduced production time are likely to 
lead to compensating price adjustments, assuming a competitive market.
    Oncidium spp. represent a relatively small portion of the orchid 
market and orchid trade, with a market share of

[[Page 71705]]

between 15 and 25 percent. While many of the entities that may be 
affected by the final rule, such as importers of orchids for the potted 
plant market, are small by Small Business Administration standards, we 
expect any impact to be minimal, given Oncidium spp.'s small share of 
the U.S. orchid market and their small share of total orchid imports 
from Taiwan. Allowing importation of Oncidium spp. from Taiwan in 
growing media could also lead to an expanded market for this genus, but 
any increase is likely to be limited given the flower's unusual 
appearance.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12988

    This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, 
Civil Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted: (1) All State 
and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule 
will be preempted; (2) no retroactive effect will be given to this 
rule; and (3) administrative proceedings will not be required before 
parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

National Environmental Policy Act

    To provide the public with documentation of APHIS' review and 
analysis of any potential environmental impacts associated with the 
proposed importation of Oncidium spp. from Taiwan, we have prepared an 
environmental assessment. The environmental assessment was prepared in 
accordance with: (1) The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), (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).
    The environmental assessment may be viewed on the Regulations.gov 
Web site or in our reading room. (A link to Regulations.gov and 
information on the location and hours of the reading room are provided 
under the heading ADDRESSES at the beginning of this proposed rule.) In 
addition, copies may be obtained by calling or writing to the 
individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This proposed rule contains no new information collection or 
recordkeeping requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 319

    Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Imports, Logs, Nursery stock, Plant 
diseases and pests, Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Rice, Vegetables.

    Accordingly, we propose to amend 7 CFR part 319 as follows:

PART 319--FOREIGN QUARANTINE NOTICES

0
1. The authority citation for part 319 continues to read as follows:

    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.

0
2. Section 319.37-8 (e) introductory text is amended as follows:
0
a. By adding a new entry in alphabetical order.
0
b. In footnotes 9 and 10, by removing the words ``footnote 9'' and 
adding the words ``footnote 8'' in their place.
    The addition reads as follows:


Sec.  319.37-8  Growing media.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    Oncidium spp. from Taiwan
* * * * *

    Done in Washington, DC, this 1st day of December 2014.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-28487 Filed 12-2-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P