[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 135 (Friday, July 13, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41362-41363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17144]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2012-0025]
Okanagan Specialty Fruits, Inc.; Availability of Petition for
Determination of Nonregulated Status of Apples Genetically Engineered
To Resist Browning
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) has received a petition from Okanagan
Specialty Fruits, Inc., seeking a determination of nonregulated status
of apple events designated as events GD743 and GS784, which have been
genetically engineered to resist browning. The petition has been
submitted in accordance with our regulations concerning the
introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms and products.
We are making the Okanagan Specialty Fruits, Inc., petition available
for review and comment to help us identify potential environmental and
interrelated economic issues and impacts that APHIS may determine
should be considered in our evaluation of the petition.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
September 11, 2012.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0025-0001.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2012-0025, 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-2012-
0025 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) 7997039 before coming.
The petition is also available on the APHIS Web site at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/brs/aphisdocs/10_16101p.pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. John Turner, Director,
Environmental Risk Analysis Programs, Biotechnology Regulatory
Services, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 147, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236;
(301) 851-3954, email: john.t.turner@aphis.usda.gov. To obtain copies
of the petition, contact Ms. Cindy Eck at (301) 851-3892, email:
cynthia.a.eck@aphis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Under the authority of the plant pest provisions of the Plant
Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.), the regulations in 7 CFR part
340, ``Introduction of Organisms and Products Altered or Produced
Through Genetic Engineering Which Are Plant Pests or Which There Is
Reason to Believe Are Plant Pests,'' regulate, among other things, the
introduction (importation, interstate movement, or release into the
environment) of organisms and products altered or produced through
genetic engineering that are plant pests or that there is reason to
believe are plant pests. Such genetically engineered (GE) organisms and
products are considered ``regulated articles.''
The regulations in Sec. 340.6(a) provide that any person may
submit a petition to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) seeking a determination that an article should not be regulated
under 7 CFR part 340. Paragraphs (b) and (c) of Sec. 340.6 describe
the form that a petition for a determination of nonregulated status
must take and the information that must be included in the petition.
APHIS has received a petition (APHIS Petition Number 10-161-01p)
from Okanagan Specialty Fruits, Inc., of British Columbia, Canada,
seeking a determination of nonregulated status of apples (Malus x
domestica) designated as events GD743 and GS784, which have been
genetically engineered to
[[Page 41363]]
resist browning, stating that these apples are unlikely to pose a plant
pest risk and, therefore, should not be a regulated article under
APHIS' regulations in 7 CFR part 340.
As described in the petition, apple events GD743 and GS784 have
been genetically engineered to resist enzymatic browning through the
insertion of a polyphenol oxidase suppression sequence derived from
apple. Apple events GD743 and GS784 are currently regulated under 7 CFR
part 340. Interstate movements and field tests of apple events GD743
and GS784 have been conducted under permits issued or notifications
acknowledged by APHIS.
Field tests conducted under APHIS oversight allowed for evaluation
in a natural agricultural setting while imposing measures to minimize
the risk of persistence in the environment after completion of the
test. Data are gathered on multiple parameters and used by the
applicant to evaluate agronomic characteristics and product
performance. These and other data are used by APHIS to determine if the
new variety poses a plant pest risk.
Paragraph (d) of Sec. 340.6 provides that APHIS will publish a
notice in the Federal Register providing 60 days for public comment for
petitions for a determination of nonregulated status. On March 6, 2012,
we published in the Federal Register (77 FR 13258-13260, Docket No.
APHIS-2011-0129) a notice \1\ describing our process for soliciting
public comment when considering petitions for determinations of
nonregulated status for GE organisms. In that notice we indicated that
APHIS would accept written comments regarding a petition once APHIS
deemed it complete.
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\1\ To view the notice, go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0129.
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In accordance with Sec. 340.6(d) of the regulations and our
process for soliciting public input when considering petitions for
determinations of nonregulated status for GE organisms, we are
publishing this notice to inform the public that APHIS will accept
written comments regarding the petition for a determination of
nonregulated status from interested or affected persons for a period of
60 days from the date of this notice. The petition is available for
public review, and copies are available as indicated under ADDRESSES
and FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT above.
We are interested in receiving comments regarding potential
environmental and interrelated economic issues and impacts that APHIS
may determine should be considered in our evaluation of the petition.
We are particularly interested in receiving comments regarding
biological, cultural, or ecological issues, and we encourage the
submission of scientific data, studies, or research to support your
comments. We also request that, when possible, commenters provide
relevant information regarding specific localities or regions as apple
growth, crop management, and crop utilization may vary considerably by
geographic region.
After the comment period closes, APHIS will review all written
comments received during the comment period and any other relevant
information; any substantive issues identified by APHIS based on our
review of the petition and our evaluation and analysis of comments will
be considered in the development of our decisionmaking documents.
As part of our decisionmaking process regarding a GE organism's
regulatory status, APHIS prepares a plant pest risk assessment to
assess its plant pest risk and the appropriate environmental
documentation--either an environmental assessment (EA) or an
environmental impact statement (EIS)--in accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), to provide the Agency with a review
and analysis of any potential environmental impacts associated with the
petition request. For petitions for which APHIS prepares an EA, APHIS
will follow our published process for soliciting public comment (see
footnote 1) and publish a separate notice in the Federal Register
announcing the availability of APHIS' EA and plant pest risk
assessment. Should APHIS determine that an EIS is necessary, APHIS will
complete the NEPA EIS process in accordance with Council on
Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR part 1500-1508) and APHIS'
NEPA implementing regulations (7 CFR part 372).
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701-7772 and 7781-7786; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7
CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.
Done in Washington, DC, this 9th day of July 2012.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-17144 Filed 7-12-12; 8:45 am]
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