[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 203 (Tuesday, October 21, 1997)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 54572-54574]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-27815]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. 97-102-1]
Mediterranean Fruit Fly; Addition to Quarantined Areas
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are amending the Mediterranean fruit fly regulations by
adding a portion of Los Angeles County, CA, to the list of quarantined
areas, and restricting the interstate movement of regulated articles
from the quarantined area. This action is necessary on an emergency
basis to prevent the spread of the Mediterranean fruit fly into
noninfested areas of the continental United States.
DATES: Interim rule effective October 16, 1997. Consideration will be
given only to comments received on or before December 22, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to
Docket No. 97-102-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS,
suite 3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please
state that your comments refer to Docket No. 97-102-1. Comments
received may be inspected at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 14th
Street and Independence Avenue SW.,
[[Page 54573]]
Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except holidays. Persons wishing to inspect comments are requested to
call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to facilitate entry into the comment
reading room.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael B. Stefan, Operations
Officer, Domestic and Emergency Programs, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road
Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236, (301) 734-8247; or e-mail:
mstefan@aphis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), is one
of the world's most destructive pests of numerous fruits and
vegetables. The Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly) can cause serious
economic losses. Heavy infestations can cause complete loss of crops,
and losses of 25 to 50 percent are not uncommon. The short life cycle
of this pest permits the rapid development of serious outbreaks.
The Mediterranean fruit fly regulations (7 CFR 301.78 through
301.78-10; referred to below as the regulations) restrict the
interstate movement of regulated articles from quarantined areas to
prevent the spread of Medfly to noninfested areas of the United States.
Recent trapping surveys by inspectors of California State and
county agencies and by inspectors of the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) have revealed that an infestation of Medfly
has occurred in a portion of Los Angeles County, CA.
The regulations in Sec. 301.78-3 provide that the Administrator of
APHIS will list as a quarantined area each State, or each portion of a
State, in which the Medfly has been found by an inspector, in which the
Administrator has reason to believe that the Medfly is present, or that
the Administrator considers necessary to regulate because of its
inseparability for quarantine enforcement purposes from localities in
which the Medfly has been found.
Less than an entire State will be designated as a quarantined area
only if the Administrator determines that the State has adopted and is
enforcing restrictions on the intrastate movement of the regulated
articles that are equivalent to those imposed on the interstate
movement of regulated articles, and the designation of less than the
entire State as a quarantined area will prevent the interstate spread
of the Medfly. The boundary lines for a portion of a State being
designated as quarantined are set up approximately four-and-one-half
miles from the detection sights. The boundary lines may vary due to
factors such as the location of Medfly host material, the location of
transportation centers such as bus stations and airports, the patterns
of persons moving in that State, the number and patterns of
distribution of the Medfly, and the use of clearly identifiable lines
for the boundaries.
In accordance with these criteria and the recent Medfly findings
described above, we are amending Sec. 301.78-3 by adding a portion of
Los Angeles County, CA, to the list of quarantined areas. The new
quarantined area is described in the rule portion of this document.
Emergency Action
The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
has determined that an emergency exists that warrants publication of
this interim rule without prior opportunity for public comment.
Immediate action is necessary to prevent the Medfly from spreading to
noninfested areas of the United States.
Because prior notice and other public procedures with respect to
this action are impracticable and contrary to the public interest under
these conditions, we find good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 to make it
effective upon signature. We will consider comments that are received
within 60 days of publication of this rule in the Federal Register.
After the comment period closes, we will publish another document in
the Federal Register. It will include a discussion of any comments we
receive and any amendments we are making to the rule as a result of the
comments.
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
process required by Executive Order 12866.
This interim rule amends the Medfly regulations by adding a portion
of Los Angeles County, CA, to the list of quarantined areas. This
action is necessary on an emergency basis to prevent the spread of the
Medfly into noninfested areas of the United States.
This interim rule affects the interstate movement of regulated
articles from the quarantined area of Los Angeles County, CA. We
estimate that there are 613 entities in the quarantined area of Los
Angeles County, CA, that sell, process, handle, or move regulated
articles; this estimate includes 2 farmers' markets, 2 community
gardens, 31 distributors, 4 food banks, 529 fruit sellers, 4 growers,
30 nurseries, and 11 swapmeets. The number of these entities that meet
the U.S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) definition of a small
entity is unknown, since the information needed to make that
determination (i.e., each entity's gross receipts or number of
employees) is not currently available. However, it is reasonable to
assume that most of the 613 entities are small in size, since the
overwhelming majority of businesses in California, as well as the rest
of the United States, are small entities by SBA standards.
Few, if any, of the 613 entities will be significantly affected by
the quarantine action taken in this interim rule because few of those
entities move regulated articles outside the State of California during
the normal course of their business. Nor do consumers of products
purchased from those entities generally move those products interstate.
The effect on any small entities that do move regulated articles
interstate from the quarantined area will be minimized by the
availability of various treatments that, in most cases, will allow
those small entities to move regulated articles interstate with very
little additional costs. Also, many of those small entities sell other
items in addition to regulated articles, so the effect, if any, of the
interim rule should be minimal.
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
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.
National Environmental Policy Act
An environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact
have been prepared for this rule. The site specific environmental
assessment and programmatic Medfly environmental impact statement
provide a basis for our conclusion that implementation of integrated
pest management to achieve
[[Page 54574]]
eradication of the Medfly would not have a significant impact on human
health and the natural environment. Based on the finding of no
significant impact, the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has determined that an environmental impact
statement need not be prepared.
The environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact
were prepared in accordance with: (1) The National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), (2) Regulations of the
Council on Environmental Quality for implementing the procedural
provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), (3) USDA regulations
implementing NEPA (7 CFR part 1b), and (4) APHIS' NEPA Implementing
Procedures (7 CFR part 372).
Copies of the environmental assessment and finding of no
significant impact are available for public inspection at USDA, room
1141, South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except holidays. Persons wishing to inspect copies are requested to
call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to facilitate entry into the reading room.
In addition, copies may be obtained by writing to the individual listed
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule contains no 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, 7 CFR part 301 is amended as follows:
PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES
1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 147a, 150bb, 150dd, 150ee, 150ff, 161, 162,
and 164-167; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(c).
2. In Sec. 301.78-3, paragraph (c) is amended by adding an entry
for Los Angeles County, CA, in alphabetical order, to read as follows:
Sec. 301.78-3 Quarantined areas.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles County. That portion of Los Angeles County in the
Walnut Park and Huntington Park areas bounded by a line beginning at
the intersection of State Highway 60 and Interstate Highway 5; then
southeast along Interstate Highway 5 to Garfield Avenue; then
southwest along Garfield Avenue to Florence Avenue; then southeast
along Florence Avenue to Old River School Road; then southwest along
Old River School Road to Firestone Boulevard; then southeast along
Firestone Boulevard to Paramount Boulevard; then southwest along
Paramount Boulevard to Interstate Highway 105; then west along
Interstate Highway 105 to Interstate Highway 710; then southwest
along Interstate Highway 710 to Rosecrans Avenue; then west along
Rosecrans Avenue to Interstate Highway 110; then north along
Interstate Highway 110 to Interstate Highway 105; then west along
Interstate Highway 105 to Normandie Avenue; then north along
Normandie Avenue to Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard; then east
along Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard to Interstate Highway 110;
then north along Interstate Highway 110 to Adams Boulevard; then
southeast along Adams Boulevard to San Pedro Street; then northeast
along San Pedro Street to Interstate Highway 10; then east along
Interstate Highway 10 to State Highway 60; then east along State
Highway 60 to the point of beginning.
* * * * *
Done in Washington, DC, this 16th day of October 1997.
Craig A. Reed,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 97-27815 Filed 10-20-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P