[Federal Register: October 28, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 208)]
[Notices]
[Page 61391]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28oc03-26]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. 98-103-4]
Importation of Artificially Dwarfed Plants in Growing Media From
the People's Republic of China; Availability of an Environmental
Assessment and Request for Comments
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of reopening of comment period.
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SUMMARY: We are reopening the comment period for an environmental
assessment prepared for a proposal to allow the importation of
artificially dwarfed (penjing) plants of the genera Buxus, Ehretia
(Carmona), Podocarpus, Sageretia, and Serissa from the People's
Republic of China in an approved growing medium subject to specified
growing, inspection, and certification requirements. This action will
allow interested persons additional time to prepare and submit
comments.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
November 12, 2003.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by postal mail/commercial delivery
or by e-mail. If you use postal mail/commercial delivery, please send
four copies of your comment (an original and three copies) to: Docket
No. 98-103-3, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station
3C71, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state
that your comment refers to Docket No. 98-103-3. If you use e-mail, address your comment to regulations@aphis.usda.gov. Your comment must
be contained in the body of your message; do not send attached files.
Please include your name and address in your message and ``Docket No.
98-103-3'' on the subject line.
You may read any comments that we receive on the environmental
assessment in our reading room. The reading room 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) 690-2817 before coming.
APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related
information, including the names of organizations and individuals who
have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William Thomas, Import Specialist,
Phytosanitary Issues Management, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 140,
Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-6799.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On September 20, 2000, we published in the Federal Register (65 FR
56803-56806, Docket No. 98-103-1) a proposal to amend the regulations
to allow artificially dwarfed plants of the genera Buxus, Ehretia
(Carmona), Podocarpus, Sageretia, and Serissa to be imported into the
United States from the People's Republic of China in an approved
growing medium subject to specified growing, inspection, and
certification requirements. We accepted comments on our proposal for a
total of 90 days, ending December 20, 2000.\1\
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\1\ The comment period on the proposed rule was extended from 60
to 90 days in a notice published in the Federal Register on December
1, 2000 (65 FR 75187, Docket No. 98-103-2).
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In response to comments received on the proposed rule, APHIS has
narrowed the application of the rule to apply to particular species of
the genera mentioned previously. We have also revised the pest risk
assessments and created a risk mitigation document. The five revised
pest risk assessments as well as the risk mitigation document are
available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/pim. We have
also concluded section 7 consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) to assess the potential effects of the proposed action on
endangered or threatened species, as required under the Endangered
Species Act. On April 10, 2003, FWS concluded the section 7
consultation process by concurring with APHIS'' determination that the
importation of Buxus sinica, Ehretia microphylla, Podocarpus
macrophyllus, Sageretia thea, and Serissa foetida from the People's
Republic of China will not adversely affect federally listed or
proposed endangered or threatened species or their habitats.
Upon receiving FWS concurrence and after preparing the revised pest
risk assessments and the revised pest mitigation document, APHIS
prepared an environmental assessment titled ``Final Rule for the
Importation of Artificially Dwarfed Plants in Growing Media from the
People's Republic of China'' and dated September 2003. 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).
On September 15, 2003, we published in the Federal Register (68 FR
53956-53957, Docket No. 98-103-3) a notice announcing the availability
of the environmental assessment. In that notice, we requested public
comments on the environmental assessment.
Comments on the environmental assessment were required to be
received on or before October 15, 2003. We are reopening the comment
period for the environmental assessment until November 12, 2003. This
action will allow interested persons additional time to prepare and
submit comments. We will also consider all comments received between
October 16, 2003 (the day after the close of the original comment
period) and the date of this notice.
You may review the environmental assessment on the Internet at
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/es/ppqdocs.html. You may request paper
copies of the environmental assessment, the pest risk assessments, and
the risk mitigation document from the person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
Please refer to the title of the environmental assessment when
requesting copies. The environmental assessment is also available for
review in our reading room (the location and hours of the reading room
are listed under the heading ADDRESSES at the beginning of this
notice).
Done in Washington, DC, this 23rd day of October, 2003.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 03-27148 Filed 10-27-03; 8:45 am]
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