[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 206 (Thursday, October 25, 2007)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 60533-60537]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-21003]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
Prices of new books are listed in the first FEDERAL REGISTER issue of each
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 206 / Thursday, October 25, 2007 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 60533]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. APHIS-2007-0114]
Imported Fire Ant; Additions to the List of Quarantined Areas
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We are amending the imported fire ant regulations by
designating as quarantined areas all or portions of 2 counties in
Arkansas, 3 in North Carolina, and 3 in Tennessee, by expanding the
quarantined area in 1 county in Arkansas and 15 in Tennessee, and by
designating the entire State of South Carolina as a quarantined area.
As a result of this action, the interstate movement of regulated
articles from those areas will be restricted. This action is necessary
to prevent the artificial spread of imported fire ant to noninfested
areas of the United States.
DATES: This interim rule is effective October 25, 2007. We will
consider all comments that we receive on or before December 24, 2007.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov, select ``Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service'' from the agency drop-down menu, then click ``Submit.'' In the
Docket ID column, select APHIS-2007-0114 to submit or view public
comments and to view supporting and related materials available
electronically. Information on using Regulations.gov, including
instructions for accessing documents, submitting comments, and viewing
the docket after the close of the comment period, is available through
the site's ``User Tips'' link.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. APHIS-
2007-0114, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-
03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state
that your comment refers to Docket No. APHIS-2007-0114.
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: Additional information about APHIS and its
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Charles L. Brown, Imported Fire
Ant Quarantine Program Manager, Pest Detection and Management Programs,
PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301)
734-4838.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The imported fire ant regulations (contained in 7 CFR 301.81
through 301.81-10 and referred to below as the regulations) quarantine
infested States or infested areas within States and restrict the
interstate movement of regulated articles to prevent the artificial
spread of the imported fire ant.
The imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta Buren, Solenopsis
richteri Forel, and hybrids of these species) is an aggressive,
stinging insect that, in large numbers, can seriously injure and even
kill livestock, pets, and humans. The imported fire ant, which is not
native to the United States, feeds on crops and builds large, hard
mounds that damage farm and field machinery. The regulations are
intended to prevent the imported fire ant from spreading throughout its
ecological range within the country.
The regulations in Sec. 301.81-3 provide that the Administrator of
the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will list as a
quarantined area each State, or each portion of a State, that is
infested with the imported fire ant. The Administrator will designate
less than an entire State as a quarantined area only under the
following conditions: (1) The State has adopted and is enforcing
restrictions on the intrastate movement of the regulated articles
listed in Sec. 301.81-2 that are equivalent to the interstate movement
restrictions imposed by the regulations; and (2) designating less than
the entire State will prevent the spread of the imported fire ant. The
Administrator may include uninfested acreage within a quarantined area
due to its proximity to an infestation or its inseparability from an
infested locality for quarantine purposes.
In Sec. 301.81-3, paragraph (e) lists quarantined areas. We are
amending Sec. 301.81-3(e) by:
Adding all of Lonoke and Yell Counties, AR, to the
quarantined area;
Expanding the quarantined area in Faulkner County, AR, to
include the entirety of the county;
Adding portions of Iredell, Lincoln, and Rutherford
Counties, NC, to the list of quarantined areas;
Expanding the quarantined areas in Cherokee, Greenville,
and Spartanburg Counties, SC, to include the entirety of each county,
with the result that the entire State of South Carolina is now
designated as a quarantined area;
Adding portions of Crockett, Morgan, and Warren Counties,
TN, to the list of quarantined areas;
Expanding the quarantined areas in Anderson, Coffee,
Cumberland, Haywood, Knox, and Williamson Counties, TN; and
Expanding the quarantined areas in Bedford, Benton,
Bledsoe, Blount, Carroll, Grundy, Hickman, Rutherford, and Van Buren
Counties, TN, to include the entirety of each county.
We are taking these actions because recent surveys conducted by
APHIS and State and county agencies revealed that the imported fire ant
has spread to these areas. See the regulatory text at the end of this
document for specific descriptions of the new and revised quarantined
areas.
[[Page 60534]]
Emergency Action
This rulemaking is necessary on an emergency basis to prevent the
spread of imported fire ant into noninfested areas of the United
States. Under these circumstances, the Administrator has determined
that prior notice and opportunity for public comment are contrary to
the public interest and that there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 for
making this rule effective less than 30 days after publication in the
Federal Register.
We will consider comments we receive during the comment period for
this interim rule (see DATES above). After the comment period closes,
we will publish another document in the Federal Register. The document
will include a discussion of any comments we receive and any amendments
we are making to the rule.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this
action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review under
Executive Order 12866.
We are amending the imported fire ant regulations by designating as
quarantined areas all or portions of 2 counties in Arkansas, 3 in North
Carolina, and 3 in Tennessee, by expanding the quarantined area in 1
county in Arkansas and 15 in Tennessee, and by designating the entire
State of South Carolina as a quarantined area. We are taking this
action because surveys conducted by APHIS and State and county agencies
revealed that imported fire ant has spread to these areas. Agricultural
activities in these imported fire ant-infested areas are at risk due to
the potential of imported fire ants to directly or indirectly damage
crops and agricultural machinery and harm livestock.
This interim rule will affect businesses such as nurseries,
landscaping operations, and timber companies that are located within
the newly expanded quarantined areas and that transport regulated
articles interstate.
Table 1 summarizes the 2002 Census of Agriculture data according to
three commodity groups that will be affected by the interim rule. These
commodity groups are: (1) Nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, and sod;
\1\ (2) other crops and hay; \2\ and (3) cut Christmas trees and short
rotation woody crops.
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\1\ In the 2002 Census, data include sales of bedding plants,
bulbs, cut flowers, flower seeds, foliage plants, mushrooms, nursery
potted plants, shrubbery, nursery stock, live Christmas trees,
tobacco transplants, sod, etc.
\2\ In the 2002 Census, data are for the total market value of
all crops not categorized elsewhere. This includes crops such as
grass seed, hay and grass silage, haylage, greenchop, hops, maple
syrup, mint for oil, ginseng root, peanuts, sugarcane, sugar beets,
etc.
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Since no clear-cut method exists to disaggregate these commodity
groups to the specific imported fire ant-regulated articles, the
entirety of these commodity groups is used to approximate the number
and size of the entities that may be affected by the interim rule.
In 2002, there were 1,193 nurseries, greenhouses, floriculture
producers, and sod producers, 4,098 producers of other crops and hay,
and 98 producers of cut Christmas trees and short rotation woody crops
in the affected counties. Sales \3\ of all agricultural products sold
in the counties were more than $1 billion in 2002, of which about $172
million can be attributed to the three commodity groups affected by the
quarantine restrictions imposed by this rule.
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\3\ The value of sales represents the gross market value before
taxes and production expenses of all agricultural products sold or
removed from the place in 2002 regardless of who received the
payment.
Table 1.--Summary of Three Commodity Groups in the Affected Counties
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Nursery, greenhouse, Other crops and hay Cut-Christmas trees Subtotal of the All agricultural
floriculture, and sod ------------------------ and short rotation commodity groups products
------------------------ woody crops affected by the -----------------------
Number of affected counties ------------------------ quarantine
Number of Sales Number of Sales ------------------------ Number of Sales
farms ($1,000) farms ($1,000) Number of Sales Number of Sales farms ($1,000)
farms ($1,000) farms ($1,000)
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3 (AR).......................... 15 1,366 399 3,095 3 .......... 417 4,461 2,923 231,180
3 (NC).......................... 75 3,701 450 1,912 7 27 532 5,640 2,533 172,680
3 (SC).......................... 130 18,946 399 1,749 18 54 547 20,749 2,751 67,410
18 (TN)......................... 973 131,192 2,850 9,001 70 593 3,893 140,786 17,046 538,125
27 (total)...................... 1,193 155,205 4,098 15,757 98 7,439 5,389 171,636 25,253 1,009,412
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Source: USDA, NASS, 2002 Census of Agriculture, State and County Level Data. Table 2. Market Value of Agricultural Products Sold Including Direct and
Organic in 2002.
Table 2 summarizes the percentage shares of sales and number of
farms for those 3 commodity groups relative to the total agricultural
product sales and number of farms in the 27 counties. Sales shares of
nursery, greenhouse, floriculture, and sod in the newly quarantined
counties of South Carolina and Tennessee are substantially higher (28
percent and 24 percent, respectively) than in the newly quarantined
counties in Arkansas and North Carolina (less than 1 percent and 2
percent, respectively). An average of 16 percent of farms in the
affected counties sell other crops and hay, but these products comprise
less than 2 percent of all agricultural products sold in these
counties. Overall, based on 2002 Census of Agriculture data, 21 percent
of the farms (5,389 out of 25,253 farms) and 17 percent of agricultural
product sales in the 27 counties may be affected by this interim rule.
Table 2.--Percentage Shares of Three Commodity Groups in the Affected Counties
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Nursery, greenhouse, Other crops and hay Cut-Christmas trees Sum of three affected All agricultural
floriculture, and sod ------------------------ and short rotation commodity groups by products
------------------------ woody crops the quarantine -----------------------
Number of counties Number of ------------------------------------------------
Number of Sales farms Sales Number of Number of Number of Sales
farms (percent) (percent) (percent) farms Sales farms Sales farms (percent)
(percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent)
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3 (AR).......................... 0.5 0.6 13.7 1.3 0.1 .......... 14.3 1.9 100 100
3 (NC).......................... 3.0 2.1 17.8 1.1 0.3 0.0 21.0 3.3 100 100
3 (SC).......................... 4.7 28.1 14.5 2.6 0.7 0.1 19.9 30.8 100 100
[[Page 60535]]
18 (TN)......................... 5.7 24.4 16.7 1.7 0.4 0.1 22.8 26.2 100 100
27 (total)...................... 4.7 15.4 16.2 1.6 0.4 0.1 21.3 17.0 100 100
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Source: USDA, NASS, 2002 Census of Agriculture, State and County Level Data. Table 2. Market Value of Agricultural Products Sold Including Direct and
Organic in 2002.
Table 3 summarizes sales and number of farms in the 27 counties and
their respective 4 States. The market value of all agricultural
products sold in these counties was more than $1 billion, about 61
percent (or $615 million) of which were sales attributable to
livestock, poultry, and animal products, with the remaining 39 percent
(or $394 million) attributable to crop sales, including nursery and
greenhouse crops. The market value of the 3 affected commodity groups
sold in the 27 counties was about $172 million, or about 14 percent of
the $1.2 billion in total sales for the 3 affected commodity groups in
the 4 States. Within these States and in neighboring States, there is a
large agricultural economy at risk due to the potential of imported
fire ant to damage crops and injure livestock.
Table 3.--Sales and Number of Farms in the Newly Quarantined Counties and Their States
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Sum of three affected All crops, including Livestock, poultry, All agricultural
commodity groups and nursery and greenhouse and their products products
State total -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of counties ------------------------
Number of Sales Number of Sales Number of Sales Number of Sales
farms ($1,000) farms ($1,000) farms ($1,000) farms ($1,000)
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Arkansas:
3................................................... 417 4,461 738 79,256 1,868 151,925 2,923 231,180
Total AR............................................ 6,287 81,986 12,995 1,620,384 30,956 3,330,014 47,483 4,950,397
North Carolina:
3................................................... 532 5,640 762 13,417 1,553 159,263 2,533 172,680
Total NC............................................ 12,030 566,104 24,587 2,008,634 26,948 4,953,052 53,930 6,961,686
South Carolina:
3................................................... 547 20,749 785 33,071 1,207 34,338 2,751 67,409
Total SC............................................ 6,131 244,090 7,869 593,245 10,133 896,505 24,541 1,489,750
Tennessee:
18.................................................. 3,893 140,786 5,154 268,543 10,124 269,582 17,046 538,125
Total TN............................................ 17,266 333,023 29,143 1,072,548 51,367 1,127,266 87,595 2,199,814
27 newly infested counties total........................ 5,389 171,636 7,439 394,287 14,752 615,108 25,253 1,009,394
Four States (AR, NC, SC, TN) total...................... 41,714 1,225,203 74,594 5,294,811 119,404 10,306,837 213,549 15,601,647
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Source: USDA, NASS, 2002 Census of Agriculture, State and County Level Data. Table 2. Market Value of Agricultural Products Sold Including Direct and
Organic in 2002.
According to Small Business Administration criteria, a business
engaged in crop production (North American Industry Classification
System [NAICS] Subsector 111) is considered to be a small entity if its
annual receipts are not more than $750,000. A business engaged in
support activities for agriculture and forestry (NAICS Subsector 115)
is considered small if its annual receipts are not more than $6
million. Agricultural entities in the newly quarantined areas are
predominantly, if not entirely, small entities.
The aforementioned three commodity groups, as well as farm
equipment dealers, construction companies, and those who sell, process,
or move regulated articles from and through quarantined areas, may be
affected by this rule. Such operations will now be required to treat
restricted articles before moving them interstate. Only regulated
articles moved interstate outside of the quarantined areas will be
affected. However, adverse economic effects of the rule on affected
entities that move regulated articles interstate are mitigated by the
availability of various treatments. In most cases these treatments
permit the movement of regulated articles with only a small additional
cost. For example, the treatment cost of an average shipment of nursery
plants on a standard trailer truck ranges between 0.04 percent and 1
percent \4\ of the value of the plants transported, given a treatment
cost per shipment of around $200. The estimated annual compliance costs
for these entities is small in comparison to the benefit gained through
reduced human-assisted spread of imported fire ant to noninfested areas
of the United States.
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\4\ An average nursery plant (i.e., potted) costs between $2 and
$50, so that the value of a load for a standard tractor trailer
transporting up to 10,000 plants ranges between $20,000 and
$500,000; $200/$20,000 = 1 percent, and $200/$500,000 = 0.04
percent.
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Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12372
This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372,
which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local
officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)
Executive Order 12988
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws and
regulations that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no
retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings
[[Page 60536]]
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This 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 301
Agricultural commodities, Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.
0
Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR part 301 as follows:
PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES
0
1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701-7772 and 7781-7786; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80,
and 371.3.
Section 301.75-15 issued under Sec. 204, Title II, Public Law
106-113, 113 Stat. 1501A-293; sections 301.75-15 and 301.75-16
issued under Sec. 203, Title II, Public Law 106-224, 114 Stat. 400
(7 U.S.C. 1421 note).
0
2. In Sec. 301.81-3, paragraph (e) is amended as follows:
0
a. Under the heading Arkansas, by adding, in alphabetical order, new
entries for Lonoke and Yell Counties, and by revising the entry for
Faulkner County to read as set forth below.
0
b. Under the heading North Carolina, by adding, in alphabetical order,
new entries for Iredell, Lincoln, and Rutherford Counties, as set forth
below.
0
c. By revising the entry for South Carolina to read as set forth below.
0
d. Under the heading Tennessee, by adding, in alphabetical order, new
entries for Crockett, Morgan, and Warren Counties, and by revising the
entries for Anderson, Bedford, Benton, Bledsoe, Blount, Carroll,
Coffee, Cumberland, Grundy, Haywood, Hickman, Knox, Rutherford, Van
Buren, and Williamson Counties to read as set forth below.
Sec. 301.81-3 Quarantined areas.
* * * * *
(e) * * *
* * * * *
Arkansas
* * * * *
Faulkner County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Lonoke County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Yell County. The entire county.
* * * * *
North Carolina
* * * * *
Iredell County. That portion of the county lying south of State
Highway 150.
* * * * *
Lincoln County. That portion of the county lying east of State
Highway 321.
* * * * *
Rutherford County. That portion of the county lying south of State
Highway 74.
* * * * *
South Carolina
The entire State.
* * * * *
Tennessee
Anderson County. That portion of the county lying east and south of
a line beginning at the intersection of the Roane/Anderson County line
and Tennessee Highway 330; then northeast on Tennessee Highway 330 to
Tennessee Highway 116; then north on Tennessee Highway 116 to
Interstate 75; then southeast on Interstate 75 to the Anderson/Knox
County line.
Bedford County. The entire county.
Benton County. The entire county.
Bledsoe County. The entire county.
Blount County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Carroll County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Coffee County. That portion of the county lying west and south of a
line beginning at the intersection of the Cannon/Coffee County line and
Tennessee Highway 53; then south on Tennessee Highway 53 to Riddle
Road; then southeast on Riddle Road to Keele Road; then northeast on
Keele Road to Tennessee Highway 55; then northeast on Tennessee Highway
55 to Swann Road; then east on Swann Road to Wiser Road; then north on
Wiser Road to Rock Road; then east on Rock Road to Pleasant Knoll Road;
then north on Pleasant Knoll Road to Marcrom Road; then east on Marcrom
Road to the Coffee/Warren County line.
Crockett County. That portion of the county lying east of a line
beginning at the intersection of the Haywood/Crockett County line and
U.S. Highway 70A/79; then northeast on U.S. Highway 70A/79 to Tennessee
Highway 88; then north on Tennessee Highway 88 to Tennessee Highway 54;
then northeast on Tennessee Highway 54 to the Crockett/Gibson County
line.
Cumberland County. That portion of the county lying southeast of a
line beginning at the intersection of the White/Cumberland County line
and U.S. Highway 70; then east on U.S. Highway 70 to Market Street (in
Crab Orchard); then north on Market Street to Main Street; then west on
Main Street to Chestnut Hill Road; then northeast on Chestnut Hill Road
to Westchester Drive; then north on Westchester Drive to Peavine Road;
then east on Peavine Road to Hebbertsburg Road; then northeast on
Hebbertsburg Road to the Cumberland/Morgan County line.
* * * * *
Grundy County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Haywood County. That portion of the county lying southeast of
Tennessee Highway 54.
* * * * *
Hickman County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Knox County. That portion of the county lying southwest of a line
beginning at the intersection of the Union/Knox County line and
Tennessee Highway 33; then south on Tennessee Highway 33 to the
Tennessee River; then northeast along the Tennessee River to the French
Broad River; then east along the French Broad River to the Knox/Sevier
County line.
* * * * *
Morgan County. That portion of the county lying south of a line
beginning at the intersection of the Cumberland/Morgan County line and
Tennessee Highway 298; then northeast on Tennessee Highway 298 to
Tennessee Highway 62; then southeast on Tennessee Highway 62 to the
Morgan/Roane County line.
* * * * *
Rutherford County. The entire county.
* * * * *
Van Buren County. The entire county.
Warren County. That portion of the county lying southeast of a line
beginning at the intersection of the Coffee/Warren County line and
Marcrom Road; then east on Marcrom Road to Fred Hoover Road; then north
on Fred Hoover Road to Tennessee Highway 287; then northwest on
Tennessee Highway 287 to Vervilla Road; then northeast on Vervilla Road
to Swan Mill Road; then east on Swan Mill Road to Grove Road; then
southeast on Grove Road to Tennessee Highway 108/127; then northeast on
Tennessee Highway 108/127 to the split between Tennessee Highway 108
and Tennessee Highway 127; then northeast on Tennessee Highway 127 to
Tennessee Highway 56; then southeast on Tennessee Highway 56 to
Fairview Road; then northeast on Fairview Road to Tennessee Highway 8;
then southeast on Tennessee Highway 8 to Dark
[[Page 60537]]
Hollow Road; then north on Dark Hollow Road to Tennessee Highway 30;
then northeast on Tennessee Highway 30 to the Warren/Van Buren County
line.
* * * * *
Williamson County. That portion of the county lying northeast of a
line beginning at the intersection of the Davidson/Williamson County
line and U.S. Highway 31; then southwest on U.S. Highway 31 to U.S.
Highway Business 431; then southeast on U.S. Highway Business 431 to
Mack Hatcher Parkway; then north on Mack Hatcher Parkway to South Royal
Oaks Boulevard; then northeast on South Royal Oaks Boulevard to
Tennessee Highway 96; then east on Tennessee Highway 96 to Clovercroft
Road; then northeast on Clovercroft Road to Wilson Pike; then north on
Wilson Pike to Clovercroft Road; then northeast on Clovercroft Road to
Rocky Fork Road; then east on Rocky Fork Road to the Rutherford/
Williamson County line. Also, that portion of the county enclosed by a
line beginning at the intersection of the Maury/Williamson County line
and Tennessee Highway 246; then north on Tennessee Highway 246 to
Thompson Station Road West; then east on Thompson Station Road West to
Thompson Station Road East; then east on Thompson Station Road East to
Interstate 65; then south on Interstate 65 to the Williamson/Maury
County line.
* * * * *
Done in Washington, DC, this 19th day of October 2007.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E7-21003 Filed 10-24-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P