[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 163 (Tuesday, August 23, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52541-52543]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-21520]
[[Page 52541]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. APHIS-2010-0128]
Asian Longhorned Beetle; Quarantined Areas and Regulated Articles
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are amending the Asian longhorned beetle regulations by
quarantining portions of Suffolk and Norfolk Counties, MA, and
expanding the quarantined area in Worcester County, MA. As a result of
this action, the interstate movement of regulated articles from those
areas will be restricted. We are also updating the list of regulated
articles in order to reflect new information concerning host plants.
These actions are necessary to prevent the artificial spread of the
Asian longhorned beetle to noninfested areas of the United States.
DATES: This interim rule is effective August 23, 2011. We will consider
all comments that we receive on or before October 24, 2011.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2010-0128-0001.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2010-0128, 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-2010-
0128 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) 690-2817 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Claudia Ferguson, Regulatory
Policy Specialist, Regulations, Permits, and Manuals, PPQ, APHIS; 4700
River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-0754.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Asian longhorned beetle (ALB, Anoplophora glabripennis), an
insect native to China and Korea is a destructive pest of hardwood
trees. It attacks many healthy hardwood trees, including maple, horse
chestnut, birch, poplar, willow, and elm. In addition, nursery stock,
logs, green lumber, firewood, stumps, roots, branches, and wood debris
of half an inch or more in diameter are subject to infestation.
Immature beetles bore into tree trunks and branches of a host tree,
causing heavy sap flow from wounds and sawdust accumulation at the tree
base, eventually killing the tree. They feed on, and over-winter in,
the interiors of trees. Adult beetles emerge in the spring and summer
months from round holes approximately three-eighths of an inch in
diameter (about the size of a dime) that they bore through branches and
trunks of trees. After emerging, adult beetles feed for 10 to 15 days
and then mate. Adult females then lay eggs in oviposition sites that
they make on the branches of trees. A new generation of ALB is produced
each year. If this pest moves into the hardwood forests of the United
States, the nursery, maple syrup, and forest product industries could
experience severe economic losses. In addition, urban and forest ALB
infestations will result in environmental damage, aesthetic
deterioration, and a reduction of public enjoyment of recreational
spaces.
Quarantined Areas
The regulations in 7 CFR 301.51-1 through 301.51-9 restrict the
interstate movement of regulated articles from quarantined areas to
prevent the artificial spread of ALB to noninfested areas of the United
States. Surveys conducted in Massachusetts by inspectors of the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have revealed that
infestations of ALB have occurred outside the existing quarantined area
in Worcester County, and in areas in Suffolk and Norfolk Counties.
Officials of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and officials of State,
county, and city agencies in Massachusetts are conducting intensive
survey and eradication programs in the infested areas. The State of
Massachusetts has quarantined the infested areas and is restricting the
intrastate movement of regulated articles from the quarantined areas to
prevent the further spread of ALB within the State. However, Federal
regulations are necessary to restrict the interstate movement of
regulated articles from the quarantined area to prevent the spread of
ALB to other States and other countries.
The regulations in Sec. 301.51-3(a) provide that the Administrator
of APHIS will list as a quarantined area each State, or each portion of
a State in which ALB has been found by an inspector, where the
Administrator has reason to believe that ALB is present, or where the
Administrator considers regulation necessary because of its
inseparability for quarantine enforcement purposes from localities
where ALB has been found. Less than an entire State will be quarantined
only if (1) the Administrator determines that the State has adopted and
is enforcing restrictions on the intrastate movement of regulated
articles that are equivalent to those imposed by the regulations on the
interstate movement of regulated articles and (2) the designation of
less than an entire State as a quarantined area will be adequate to
prevent the artificial spread of ALB. In accordance with these criteria
and the recent ALB findings described above, we are amending the list
of quarantined areas in Sec. 301.51-3(c) to expand the quarantined
area in Worcester County and to include portions of Suffolk and Norfolk
Counties. With these changes to the quarantined areas, the total square
mileage of the quarantined areas in Worcester County is 98 square
miles, with 22 square miles added in this expansion of the quarantined
area; in Suffolk and Norfolk Counties, the total square mileage of the
quarantined area is 10 square miles. These updated quarantined areas
are described in the regulatory text at the end of this document.
Regulated Articles
Section 301.51-2 of the regulations designates certain items as
regulated articles. Regulated articles may not be moved interstate from
quarantined areas except in accordance with the conditions specified in
Sec. Sec. 301.51-4 through 301.51-9 of the regulations. Regulated
articles listed in Sec. 301.51-2(a) have included green lumber and
other material living, dead, cut, or fallen, inclusive of nursery
stock, logs, stumps, roots, branches, and debris of half an inch or
more in diameter of the following genera: Acer (maple), Aesculus (horse
chestnut), Albizia (mimosa), Betula (birch), Celtis (hackberry),
Cercidiphyllum (katsura), Fraxinus (ash), Platanus (sycamore), Populus
(poplar), Salix (willow), Sorbus (mountain ash), and Ulmus (elm). This
list of genera was based on scientific literature provided by
government officials, scientists, and government and individual
researchers from China as
[[Page 52542]]
well as survey information collected in the United States since the
time of discovery of the pest.
Based on additional survey experience and research, we are amending
the list of regulated articles by adding Koelreuteria spp. (golden rain
tree). This action is necessary because studies conducted in China by
APHIS scientists have found ALB completing a full life cycle in trees
of this genus in the environment.
Emergency Action
This rulemaking is necessary on an emergency basis to prevent the
artificial spread of ALB to 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 interim rule is subject to Executive Order 12866. However, for
this action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review
under Executive Order 12866.
We have prepared an economic analysis for this action. The action
identifies nurseries; site developers, excavators, or construction
companies; tree service companies or landscapers; firewood dealers;
municipal departments; and facilities having grounds-keeping staffs,
such as schools, golf courses, and apartment complexes as the small
entities most likely to be affected by this action and considers the
costs associated with complying with the inspection and other
requirements imposed by the regulations on the interstate movement of
regulated articles from quarantined areas. Based on the information
presented in the analysis, we expect that affected entities would not
experience any additional compliance costs as a result of this rule
because a State-imposed quarantine is already in place that applies the
same movement restrictions and inspection requirements. We invite
comment on our economic analysis, which is posted with this interim
rule on the Regulations.gov Web site (see ADDRESSES above for
instructions for accessing Regulations.gov) and may be obtained from
the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
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
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.
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. 301.51-2, paragraph (a) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 301.51-2 Regulated articles.
* * * * *
(a) Firewood (all hardwood species), and green lumber and other
material living, dead, cut, or fallen, inclusive of nursery stock,
logs, stumps, roots, branches, and debris of half an inch or more in
diameter of the following genera: Acer (maple), Aesculus (horse
chestnut), Albizia (mimosa), Betula (birch), Celtis (hackberry),
Cercidiphyllum (katsura), Fraxinus (ash), Koelreuteria (golden rain
tree), Platanus (sycamore), Populus (poplar), Salix (willow), Sorbus
(mountain ash), and Ulmus (elm).
* * * * *
0
3. In Sec. 301.51-3, paragraph (c), under the heading
``Massachusetts,'' a new entry for Suffolk and Norfolk Counties is
added and the entry for Worcester County is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 301.51-3 Quarantined areas.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
Massachusetts
Suffolk and Norfolk Counties. The area in Suffolk and Norfolk
Counties, including the City of Boston and the Town of Brookline, that
is bounded by a line starting at the intersection of Metropolitan
Avenue and Poplar Street, which becomes Canterbury Street; then
northeast on Canterbury Street to American Legion Highway; then
northeast on American Legion Highway to Route 28; then north and
northwest on Route 28 to Centre Street; then west on Centre Street,
which becomes Perkins Street; then west on Perkins Street to Chestnut
Street; then northwest on Chestnut Street to Cypress Street; then
northwest on Cypress Street to Walnut Street; then west and south on
Walnut Street, which becomes Warren Street; then west on Warren Street
to Lee Street; then northwest on Lee Street to Heath Street; then
southwest and west on Heath Street to Hammond Street; then south on
Hammond Street to Lagrange Street; then south on Lagrange Street to
Beverly Road; then southeast on Beverly Road to Independence Drive;
then southwest on Independence Drive to VFW Parkway; then southwest on
VFW Parkway to Corey Street; then southeast on Corey Street to Centre
Street; then east on Centre Street to West Roxbury Parkway; then
southeast on West Roxbury Parkway to Washington Street; then northeast
on Washington Street to Metropolitan Avenue; then southeast on
Metropolitan Street to the point of beginning.
Worcester County. The portion of Worcester County, including
portions or all of the municipalities of Worcester, Holden, West
Boylston, Boylston, Auburn, and Shrewsbury that is bounded by a line
starting at the intersection of Route 140 (Grafton Circle) and Route 9
(Belmont Street) in Shrewsbury; then north and northwest on Route 140
to the Boylston Town Boundary; then follow the entirety of the Boylston
Town Boundary until it comes to the West Boylston Town boundary on the
Massachusetts Department of Conservation and
[[Page 52543]]
Recreation Watershed Property; then along the West Boylston Town
boundary until it intersects Manning Street; then southwest on Manning
Street in Holden to Wachusett Street (Route 31); then south on
Wachusett Street to Highland Street (still Route 31); then southwest on
Highland Street to Main Street; then southeast on Main Street to Bailey
Road; then south on Bailey Road to Chapin Road; then south on Chapin
Road to its end; then continuing in a southeasterly direction to Fisher
Road; then southwest on Fisher Road to Stonehouse Hill Road; then south
on Stonehouse Hill Road to Reservoir Street; then southeast on
Reservoir Street until it intersects the Worcester City boundary; then
along the Worcester City boundary until it intersects Oxford Street;
then south on Oxford Street to Auburn Street; then southeast on Auburn
Street crossing under the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90) and continuing
southeast on Millbury Street; then northeast on Washington Street to
the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90); then east along the Massachusetts
Turnpike (I-90) to the Auburn Town boundary; then north along the
Auburn Town boundary to the Worcester City boundary; then northeast,
north, and northwest along the Worcester City boundary until it
intersects Route 20 (Hartford Turnpike); then east on Route 20 to Lake
Street; then north and northeast on Lake Street to Route 9 (Belmont
Street); then east on Route 9 to the point of beginning.
* * * * *
Done in Washington, DC, this 17th day of August 2011.
Gregory L. Parham,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-21520 Filed 8-22-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P