[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 188 (Thursday, September 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56886-56887]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-19453]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. 05-022-1]
Notice of Request for Approval of an Information Collection;
Voluntary ``Do Not Sell'' List of Invasive Plant Species
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: New information collection; comment request.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this
notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's
intention to request approval of a new information collection activity
associated with a voluntary ``do not sell'' list of invasive plant
species for Florida nurseries.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
November 28, 2005.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
EDOCKET: Go to http://www.epa.gov/feddocket to submit or
view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the
official public docket, and to access those documents in the public
docket that are available electronically. Once you have entered
EDOCKET, click on the ``View Open APHIS Dockets'' link to locate this
document.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. 05-022-1,
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. 05-022-1.
[[Page 56887]]
Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on this
docket 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.
Other Information: You may view APHIS documents published in the
Federal Register and related information on the Internet at http://
www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the voluntary ``do
not sell'' list of invasive plant species for Florida nurseries,
contact Dr. Barney Caton, Ecologist and Pest Risk Analyst, Center for
Plant Health Science and Technology, PPQ, 1730 Varsity Drive, Suite
300, Raleigh, NC 27607; (919) 855-7504. For copies of more detailed
information on the information collection, contact Mrs. Celeste
Sickles, APHIS's Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 734-7477.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Voluntary ``Do Not Sell'' List of Invasive Plant Species.
OMB Number: 0579-XXXX.
Type of Request: Approval of a new information collection.
Abstract: In 2001, the Florida Nursery, Growers, & Landscape
Association (FNGLA), in cooperation with the Florida Exotic Pest Plant
Council (FLEPPC), created and promoted a list of known invasive plant
species that should not be grown or sold in Florida nurseries. Forty-
three plant species were chosen for the list. A voluntary effort by
nurseries to limit trade in these species is a potentially worthwhile
approach to safeguarding U.S. ecosystems from invasive plants. The
effectiveness of the voluntary program on trade in these species since
2001 has not been fully studied, however.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture is responsible for safeguarding the United
States against plant pests and noxious weeds. A recent assessment by
the Center for Plant Health Science and Technology, Plant Protection
and Quarantine, APHIS, indicated that availability in Florida nurseries
of the 43 species on the FNGLA list has not changed since 1999. APHIS
proposes to conduct a single survey of owners and managers of Florida
nurseries and plant dealers to determine how many were aware of the
program, whether they were complying if they were aware of it, and
whether they would have complied if they had known about it. The
results of the survey will help APHIS learn how well such voluntary
``do not sell'' programs may be accepted by owners and managers of
nurseries and plant dealers and how effective such programs may be.
We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve
the information collection activity associated with the voluntary ``do
not sell'' list of invasive species for Florida nurseries.
The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public
(as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection.
These comments will help us:
(1) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including
whether the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology
and assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, through use, as appropriate, of automated,
electronic, mechanical, and other collection technologies; e.g.,
permitting electronic submission of responses.
Estimate of burden: The public reporting burden for this collection
of information is estimated to average 0.5 hour per response.
Respondents: Owners and managers of nurseries, and nursery stock
dealers in Florida.
Estimated annual number of respondents: 200.
Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 1.
Estimated annual number of responses: 200.
Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 100 hours. (Due to
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per
response.)
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the
request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of
public record.
Done in Washington, DC, this 23rd day of September 2005.
Elizabeth E. Gaston,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 05-19453 Filed 9-28-05; 8:45 am]
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