[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 233 (Friday, December 4, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75849-75850]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-30667]
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Notices
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 233 / Friday, December 4, 2015 /
Notices
[[Page 75849]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2015-0055]
Concurrence With OIE Risk Designations for Bovine Spongiform
Encephalopathy
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: We are advising the public of our preliminary concurrence with
the World Organization for Animal Health's (OIE) bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE) risk designations for 16 regions. The OIE
recognizes these regions as being of negligible risk for BSE. We are
taking this action based on our review of information supporting the
OIE's risk designations for these regions.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
February 2, 2016.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2015-0055.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2015-0055, 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-2015-
0055 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) 799-7039 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Roberta Morales, Senior Staff
Veterinarian, Regionalization Evaluation Services, National Import
Export Services, VS, APHIS, 920 Main Campus Drive, Suite 200, Raleigh,
NC 27606; (919) 855-7735.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The regulations in 9 CFR part 92 subpart B,
``Importation of Animals and Animal Products; Procedures for Requesting
BSE Risk Status Classification With Regard To Bovines'' (referred to
below as the regulations), set forth the process by which the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) classifies regions for
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) risk. Section 92.5 of the
regulations provides that all countries of the world are considered by
APHIS to be in one of three BSE risk categories: Negligible risk,
controlled risk, or undetermined risk. These risk categories are
defined in Sec. 92.1. Any region that is not classified by APHIS as
presenting either negligible risk or controlled risk for BSE is
considered to present an undetermined risk. The list of those regions
classified by APHIS as having either negligible risk or controlled risk
can be accessed on the APHIS Web site at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/animals/animal_disease_status.shtml. The list can also be
obtained by writing to APHIS at National Import Export Services, 4700
River Road Unit 38, Riverdale, MD 20737.
Under the regulations, APHIS may classify a region for BSE in one
of two ways. One way is for countries that have not received a risk
classification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) to
request classification by APHIS. The other way is for APHIS to concur
with the classification given to a country by the OIE.
If the OIE has classified a country as either BSE negligible risk
or BSE controlled risk, APHIS will seek information to support
concurrence with the OIE classification. This information may be
publicly available information, or APHIS may request that countries
supply the same information given to the OIE. APHIS will announce in
the Federal Register, subject to public comment, its intent to concur
with an OIE classification.
In accordance with this process, we are giving notice in this
document that APHIS intends to concur with the OIE risk classifications
of the following countries:
Regions of negligible risk for BSE: Bulgaria, Cyprus,
Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Hungary, India, Korea (Republic of),
Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia,
and Switzerland.
The OIE recommendations regarding each of the above countries can
be viewed at http://www.oie.int/animal-health-in-the-world/official-disease-status/bse/list-of-bse-risk-status/.
The conclusions of the OIE scientific commission for these
countries can be viewed at:
Bulgaria: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
86).
Cyprus: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2015.pdf (page
108).
Czech Republic: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2015.pdf (page
109).
Estonia: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
89).
France: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2015.pdf (page
110).
Hungary: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
90).
India: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_march2010_public.pdf
(page 9).
Korea (Republic of): http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
91).
Latvia: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
92).
Liechtenstein: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2015.pdf (page
112).
Luxembourg: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_
[[Page 75850]]
Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page 94).
Malta: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
95).
Portugal: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
96).
Romania: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
97).
Slovakia: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2014.pdf (page
98).
Switzerland: http://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2015.pdf (page
114).
After reviewing any comments we receive, we will announce our final
determination regarding the BSE classification of these countries in
the Federal Register, along with a discussion of and response to
pertinent issues raised by commenters. If APHIS recognizes a country as
negligible risk for BSE, the Agency will include that country in a list
of regions of negligible risk for BSE that is available to the public
on the Agency's Web site at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/animals/animal_disease_status.shtml.
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622 and 8301-8317; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a;
31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.
Done in Washington, DC, this 30th day of November 2015.
Jere L. Dick,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-30667 Filed 12-3-15; 8:45 am]
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