[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 212 (Thursday, October 31, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 56165-56169]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-27976]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA
9 CFR Part 92
[Docket No. 94-136-1]
Zoological Park Quarantine of Ruminants and Swine Imported From
Countries Where Foot-and-Mouth Disease or Rinderpest Exists
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend the regulations concerning ruminants
and swine that are imported from a country where foot-and-mouth disease
or rinderpest exists into a zoological park in the United States. These
animals are maintained in the zoological park under conditions to
prevent the spread of animal diseases. We propose to establish
conditions under which such animals may be moved from one zoological
park in the United States to another. This change would benefit zoo
programs that move animals for breeding and other purposes, and would
facilitate the movement of animals for endangered species breeding
programs, while continuing to protect against the introduction of
dangerous animal diseases into the United States.
DATES: Consideration will be given only to comments received on or
before December 30, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to
Docket No. 94-136-1, 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. 94-136-1. Comments
received may be inspected 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 comments are requested to call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to
facilitate entry into the comment reading room.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Joyce Bowling, Senior Staff
Veterinarian, Import-Export Animals Staff, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road
Unit 40, Riverdale, MD 20737-1228, (301) 734-8688.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) animal
importation regulations (contained in 9 CFR part 92 and referred to
below as the regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation of
certain animals into the United States to prevent the introduction of
communicable diseases of livestock. Among other requirements, the
regulations restrict the importation of ruminants and swine to prevent
the introduction and spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and
rinderpest.
For many years some animals imported in accordance with these
regulations have been admitted under the condition that they be placed
in postentry quarantine in zoological parks (zoos) that have been
approved by APHIS to receive such animals. We refer to such approved
zoos as PEQ Zoos, because they are approved to hold imported animals in
postentry quarantine (PEQ). At these zoos, the imported animals are
maintained in facilities that prevent access to them by the public and
by domestic animals, and that include requirements for waste disposal
and other matters that prevent the dissemination of any diseases the
animals might carry.
Section 92.404(c) concerns the importation, into a PEQ Zoo where
they will be maintained under postentry quarantine, of wild ruminants
from countries where foot-and-mouth disease or rinderpest exists.
Section 92.504(c) concerns the importation, into a PEQ Zoo where
they will be maintained under postentry quarantine, of wild swine from
countries where foot-and-mouth disease or rinderpest exists.
The regulations allow APHIS to approve a zoo as a PEQ Zoo if the
following conditions, among others, are met. The operator of the zoo
receiving the imported animals must enter into a written agreement with
APHIS for the maintenance and handling of the animals in a manner
specified in the agreement and the regulations to prevent the
introduction and dissemination of communicable disease. Among other
things, the regulations require that the zoo must include satisfactory
pens, cages, or enclosures in which the animals can be maintained so as
not to be in contact with the general public and free from contact with
domestic livestock; natural or established drainage from the zoological
park which will void contamination of land areas where domestic
livestock are kept or with which domestic livestock may otherwise come
in contact; provision for the disposition of manure, other wastes, and
dead animals within the zoo; and other reasonable facilities considered
necessary to prevent the dissemination of diseases from the zoo. The
regulations also require the operator of the zoo to have available the
services of a full-time or part-time veterinarian, or a veterinarian on
a retainer basis, to make periodic examinations of all animals
maintained at the zoo for evidence of disease. This veterinarian must
make a post-mortem examination of each animal that dies and report
suspected cases of contagious or communicable diseases to appropriate
state or federal livestock sanitary officials.
We do not propose to change any of the requirements for obtaining
permits to import wild ruminants or wild swine, and we do not propose
to change the requirements for the PEQ zoos to which these animals are
consigned after their importation.
However, the agreement between zoo operators and APHIS which is
currently required by 92.404(c)(3) and 92.504(c)(3) states that wild
ruminants and wild swine imported and consigned to postentry quarantine
in a PEQ Zoo will not be sold, exchanged or removed from the premises
of the zoo without the prior consent of APHIS. In this document, we
propose to specify the circumstances under which APHIS will consent to
the movement of imported wild ruminants and swine from a PEQ Zoo to a
non-PEQ zoo within the United States. Many zoos wish to be able to move
such animals, especially to participate in breeding programs (including
breeding programs for endangered species of ruminants and swine).
We are proposing that wild ruminants or wild swine may be moved to
a non-PEQ zoo after they have spent at least one year in postentry
quarantine in the PEQ Zoo to which the animal(s) were consigned after
importation. We propose this condition because the one year requirement
allows time for the symptoms of many communicable animal diseases to
manifest, and be detected by the zoo veterinarian required to make
periodic examinations of the imported animals. Any imported wild
ruminants or swine at a PEQ Zoo that are diagnosed with communicable
diseases during this year would not be allowed to move to other zoos,
thereby
[[Page 56166]]
reducing the risk of infecting other animals.1
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\1\ This proposed rule only addresses movement of imported wild
ruminants and wild swine. Other animals at zoos that are diagnosed
with communicable diseases are subject to various movement
restrictions by State animal health agencies. In addition, APHIS
would investigate and take action if necessary if a zoo has an
outbreak of a disease for which we have regulations in 9 CFR Chapter
I.
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We are also proposing that wild ruminants or wild swine may be
moved from a PEQ Zoo only to a zoo accredited by the American Zoo and
Aquarium Association (the AZA), or to a zoo that the Administrator of
APHIS determines to have procedures in place that are equivalent to
certain requirements for AZA accreditation that address preventing the
spread of communicable diseases.
The American Zoo and Aquarium Association maintains an
accreditation program to document that their member zoos meet high
professional standards in their facilities and operations. The
requirements for AZA accreditation include specific standards relevant
to preventing the spread of communicable diseases between animals, such
as standards for tracking identity and movement of animals, diagnosis
of disease in zoo animals, and regular veterinary care. These AZA
standards achieve some of the same purposes as the requirements APHIS
currently imposes on PEQ Zoos receiving imported wild ruminants or wild
swine. Importantly for APHIS program purposes, the AZA standards create
records that would allow APHIS to analyze the medical history of
imported animals, trace their movements in zoo locations, and identify
other animals exposed to the imported animals.
Specifically, the standards for AZA accreditation require that a
veterinarian be available to regularly inspect the animals and diagnose
and document any signs of communicable disease. AZA standards also
require that all animals must be inventoried, identified, and their
acquisition and disposition dates and locations recorded. The AZA
standards require that guardrails or barriers must keep the visiting
public from contact with animals (except for handleable animals in
facilities such as petting zoos). The AZA standards also require that
there must be separate perimeter fencing in addition to exhibit
fencing, and that deceased animals must be necropsied whenever possible
to determine the cause of death.
These and other requirements for accreditation of a zoo by the AZA
are recorded in official AZA publications, 2 and establish an
effective program to prevent the spread of communicable disease in
accredited zoos. The AZA requirements are quite similar to the
standards APHIS established in Secs. 92.404(c)(2) and 92.504(c)(2) for
zoos receiving imported ruminants and swine directly from countries
where FMD or rinderpest exist. Both APHIS and AZA standards address
matters such as maintaining secure facilities for the animals, ensuring
adequate veterinary care to diagnose communicable diseases, preventing
public contact with the animals, and determining whether animal deaths
were caused by communicable disease.
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\2\ BYLAWS OF THE AMERICAN ZOO AND AQUARIUM ASSOCIATION and
ACCREDITATION OF ZOOS AND AQUARIUMS: A PROGRAM OF THE AZA are both
available upon request to the person identified in the ``For Further
Information Contact:'' section of this document.
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Therefore, we propose to allow movement of imported wild ruminants
and wild swine to AZA accredited zoos after they have spent at least
one year in the PEQ Zoo to which they were first consigned after
importation, if such animals have not been diagnosed with communicable
diseases during that 1-year period.
There are some zoos in the United States that are not accredited by
the AZA, but that nonetheless have programs to prevent the spread of
communicable animal disease that are as effective as the programs at
AZA-accredited zoos. A zoo might not seek AZA accreditation because it
has a small and relatively static animal collection; or because of the
cost of the fees and dues associated with accreditation; or because it
is a new zoo that has not yet had time to achieve accreditation. We
propose that such zoos may be considered on a case-by-case basis if
they wish to acquire imported wild ruminants or wild swine from other
zoos. If the Administrator of APHIS determines that the zoo has
facilities and procedures (e.g., for animal identification, record
keeping, and veterinary care) in place related to preventing the spread
of communicable animal diseases that are equivalent to those required
for AZA accreditation, the Administrator would permit the zoo to
acquire imported wild ruminants or wild swine from PEQ Zoos under the
same requirements as AZA accredited zoos will be permitted to do.
Miscellaneous
We also propose to shorten and simplify some of the language in
Sec. 92.404 and Sec. 92.504, and to add the term ``PEQ Zoo'' to
distinguish zoos approved to receive animals directly after import (PEQ
Zoos) from other zoos that may receive animals only after they have
spent at least one year in a PEQ zoo.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This proposed 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 proposed rule would allow increased movement of certain
imported ruminants and swine from one zoo to another in the United
States. It would not increase the number of such animals that are
imported. It would not have any appreciable impact on commerce, and
would primarily benefit a small number of zoos that wish to acquire
animals from other zoos or trade their own animals to other zoos.
Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988,
Civil Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted: (1) All State
and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule
will be preempted; (2) no retroactive effect will be given to this
rule; and (3) administrative proceedings will not be required before
parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This proposed rule contains no new information collection or
recordkeeping requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). The existing information collection and
recordkeeping requirements in Secs. 92.404 and 92.504 were previously
approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under OMB control
number 0579-0040, and we propose to add that control number at the end
of these sections.
List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 92
Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Poultry and poultry products,
Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Accordingly, 9 CFR part 92 would be amended as follows:
[[Page 56167]]
PART 92--IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN ANIMALS AND POULTRY AND CERTAIN
ANIMAL AND POULTRY PRODUCTS; INSPECTION AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR
CERTAIN MEANS OF CONVEYANCE AND SHIPPING CONTAINERS THEREON
1. The authority citation for part 92 would continue to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622; 19 U.S.C. 1306; 21 U.S.C. 102-105,
111, 114a, 134a, 134b, 134c, 134d, 134f, 135, 136, and 136a; 31
U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(d).
2. Sec. 92.404, paragraph(c) would be revised to read as follows:
Sec. 92.404 Import permits for ruminants and for ruminant specimens
for diagnostic purposes; and reservation fees for space at quarantine
facilities maintained by APHIS.
* * * * *
(c) Wild ruminants from countries where foot-and-mouth disease or
rinderpest exists. This paragraph applies to the importation of wild
ruminants, such as, but not limited to, giraffes, deer and antelopes,
from countries designated in part 94 of this subchapter as countries in
which foot-and-mouth disease or rinderpest exist.
(1) Permits for the importation of wild ruminants will be issued
only for importations through the Port of New York, and only if the
animals are imported for exhibition in a PEQ Zoo. A PEQ Zoo is a
zoological park or other place maintained for the exhibition of live
animals for recreational or educational purposes that:
(i) Has been approved by the Administrator in accordance with
paragraph (c)(2) of this section to receive and maintain imported wild
ruminants; and
(ii) Has entered into the agreement with APHIS set forth in
paragraph (c)(4) of this section for the maintenance and handling of
imported wild ruminants.
(2) Approval of a PEQ Zoo shall be on the basis of an inspection,
by an authorized representative of the Department, of the physical
facilities of the establishment and its methods of operation. Standards
for acceptable physical facilities shall include satisfactory pens,
cages, or enclosures in which the imported ruminants can be maintained
so as not to be in contact with the general public and free from
contact with domestic livestock; natural or established drainage from
the PEQ Zoo which will void contamination of land areas where domestic
livestock are kept or with which domestic livestock may otherwise come
in contact; provision for the disposition of manure, other wastes, and
dead ruminants within the PEQ Zoo; and other reasonable facilities
considered necessary to prevent the dissemination of diseases from the
PEQ Zoo. The operator of the PEQ Zoo shall have available the services
of a full-time or part-time veterinarian, or a veterinarian on a
retainer basis, who shall make periodic examinations of all animals
maintained at the PEQ Zoo for evidence of disease; who shall make a
post-mortem examination of each animal that dies; and who shall make a
prompt report of suspected cases of contagious or communicable diseases
to an APHIS representative or the State agency responsible for
livestock disease control programs.
(3) Manure and other animal wastes must be disposed of within the
PEQ Zoo park for a minimum of one year following the date an imported
wild ruminant enters the zoo. If an APHIS veterinarian determines that
an imported ruminant shows no signs of any communicable disease or
exposure to any such disease during this 1-year period, its manure and
other wastes need not be disposed of within the zoo after the 1-year
period. If, however, an APHIS veterinarian determines that an imported
ruminant does show signs of any communicable disease during this 1-year
period, an APHIS veterinarian will investigate the disease and
determine whether the ruminant's manure and other wastes may safely be
disposed of outside the zoo after the 1-year period has ended.
(4) Prior to the issuance of an import permit under this section,
the operator of the approved PEQ Zoo to which the imported ruminants
are to be consigned, and the importer of the ruminants, if such
operator and importer are different parties, shall execute an agreement
covering each ruminant or group of ruminants for which the import
permit is requested. The agreement shall be in the following form:
Agreement for the Importation, Quarantine and Exhibition of Certain
Wild Ruminants and Wild Swine
____________________, operator(s) of the zoological park known
as ____________________ (Name) located at ____________________ (City
and state), and ____________________ (Importer) hereby request a
permit for the importation of ____________________ (Number and kinds
of animals) for exhibition purposes at the said zoological park,
said animals originating in a country where foot-and-mouth disease
or rinderpest exists and being subject to restrictions under
regulations contained in part 92, title 9, Code of Federal
Regulations.
In making this request, it is understood and agreed that:
1. The animals for which an import permit is requested will be
held in isolation at a port of embarkation in the country of origin,
approved by the Administrator as a port having facilities which are
adequate for maintaining wild animals in isolation from all other
animals and having veterinary supervision by officials of the
country of origin of the animals. Such animals will be held in such
isolation for not less than 60 days under the supervision of the
veterinary service of that country to determine whether the animals
show any clinical evidence of foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, or
other communicable disease and to assure that the animals will not
have been exposed to such a disease within the 60 days next before
their exportation from that country.
2. Shipment will be made direct from such port of embarkation to
the port of New York as the sole port of entry in this country. If
shipment is made by ocean vessel the animals will not be unloaded in
any foreign port en route. If shipment is made by air, the animals
will not be unloaded at any port or other place of landing, except
at a port approved by the Administrator as a port not located in a
country where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth disease exists or as a
port in such a country having facilities and inspection adequate for
maintaining wild animals in isolation from all other animals.
3. No ruminants or swine will be aboard the transporting
vehicle, vessel or aircraft, except those for which an import permit
has been issued.
4. The animals will be quarantined for not less than 30 days in
the Department's Animal Import Center in Newburgh, New York.
5. Upon release from quarantine the animals will be delivered to
the zoological park named in this agreement to become the property
of the park and they will not be sold, exchanged or removed from the
premises without the prior consent of APHIS. If moved to another
zoological park in the United States, the receiving zoological park
must be approved by the Administrator in accordance with paragraph 6
of this agreement.
6. The Administrator will approve the movement of an imported
animal subject to this agreement if the Administrator determines
that the animal has spent at least one year in quarantine in a PEQ
Zoo following importation without showing clinical evidence of foot-
and-foot mouth disease, rinderpest, or other communicable disease,
and determines that the receiving zoological park is accredited by
the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA), or the receiving
zoological park has facilities and procedures in place related to
preventing the spread of communicable animal diseases (including but
not limited to procedures for animal identification, record keeping,
and veterinary care) that are equivalent to those required for AZA
accreditation.
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(Signature of importer)
Subscribed and sworn to before me this __________ day of
__________, __________.
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(Title or designation)
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(Name of zoological park)
By---------------------------------------------------------------------
(Signature of officer of zoological park)
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[[Page 56168]]
(Title of officer)
Subscribed and sworn to before me this ____________ day of
____________, ____________.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(Title or designation)
(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control
number 0579-0040.)
3. Sec. 92.504, paragraph (c) would be revised to read as follows:
Sec. 92.504 Import permits for swine and for swine specimens for
diagnostic purposes; and reservation fees for space at quarantine
facilities maintained by APHIS.
* * * * *
(c) Wild swine from countries where foot-and-mouth disease or
rinderpest exists. This paragraph applies to the importation of wild
swine from countries designated in part 94 of this subchapter as
countries in which foot-and-mouth disease or rinderpest exist.
(1) Permits for the importation of wild swine will be issued only
for importations through the Port of New York, and only if the animals
are imported for exhibition in a PEQ Zoo. A PEQ Zoo is a zoological
park or other place maintained for the exhibition of live animals for
recreational or educational purposes that:
(i) Has been approved by the Administrator in accordance with
paragraph (c)(2) of this section to receive and maintain imported wild
swine; and
(ii) Has entered into the agreement with APHIS set forth in
paragraph (c)(4) of this section for the maintenance and handling of
imported wild swine.
(2) Approval of a PEQ Zoo shall be on the basis of an inspection,
by an authorized representative of the Department, of the physical
facilities of the establishment and its methods of operation. Standards
for acceptable physical facilities shall include satisfactory pens,
cages, or enclosures in which the imported swine can be maintained so
as not to be in contact with the general public and free from contact
with domestic livestock; natural or established drainage from the PEQ
Zoo which will void contamination of land areas where domestic
livestock are kept or with which domestic livestock may otherwise come
in contact; provision for the disposition of manure, other wastes, and
dead swine within the PEQ Zoo; and other reasonable facilities
considered necessary to prevent the dissemination of diseases from the
PEQ Zoo. The operator of the PEQ Zoo shall have available the services
of a full-time or part-time veterinarian, or a veterinarian on a
retainer basis, who shall make periodic examinations of all animals
maintained at the PEQ Zoo for evidence of disease; who shall make a
post-mortem examination of each animal that dies; and who shall make a
prompt report of suspected cases of contagious or communicable diseases
to appropriate state or federal livestock sanitary officials.
(3) Manure and other animal wastes must be disposed of within the
PEQ Zoo park for a minimum of one year following the date an imported
wild swine enters the zoo. If an APHIS veterinarian determines that an
imported swine shows no signs of any communicable disease during this
1-year period, its manure and other wastes need not be disposed of
within the zoo after the 1-year period. If, however, an APHIS
veterinarian determines that the swine does show signs of any
communicable disease during this 1-year period, an APHIS veterinarian
will investigate the disease and determine whether the swine's manure
and other wastes may safely be disposed of outside the zoo after the 1-
year period has ended.
(4) Prior to the issuance of an import permit under this section,
the operator of the approved PEQ Zoo to which the imported swine are to
be consigned, and the importer of the swine, if such operator and
importer are different parties, shall execute an agreement covering
each swine or group of swine for which the import permit is requested.
The agreement shall be in the following form:
Agreement for the Importation, Quarantine and Exhibition of Certain
Wild Ruminants and Wild Swine
____________________, operator(s) of the zoological park known
as ____________________ (Name) located at ____________________ (City
and state), and ____________________ (Importer) hereby request a
permit for the importation of ____________________ (Number and kinds
of animals) for exhibition purposes at the said zoological park,
said animals originating in a country where foot-and-mouth disease
or rinderpest exists and being subject to restrictions under
regulations contained in part 92, title 9, Code of Federal
Regulations.
In making this request, it is understood and agreed that:
1. The animals for which an import permit is requested will be
held in isolation at a port of embarkation in the country of origin,
approved by the Administrator as a port having facilities which are
adequate for maintaining wild animals in isolation from all other
animals and having veterinary supervision by officials of the
country of origin of the animals. Such animals will be held in such
isolation for not less than 60 days under the supervision of the
veterinary service of that country to determine whether the animals
show any clinical evidence of foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, or
other communicable disease and to assure that the animals will not
have been exposed to such a disease within the 60 days next before
their exportation from that country.
2. Shipment will be made direct from such port of embarkation to
the port of New York as the sole port of entry in this country. If
shipment is made by ocean vessel, the animals will not be unloaded
in any foreign port en route. If shipment is made by air, the
animals will not be unloaded at any port or other place of landing,
except at a port approved by the Administrator as a port not located
in a country where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth disease exists or as
a port in such a country having facilities and inspection adequate
for maintaining wild animals in isolation from all other animals.
3. No ruminants or swine will be aboard the transporting
vehicle, vessel or aircraft, except those for which an import permit
has been issued.
4. The animals will be quarantined for not less than 30 days in
the Department's Animal Import Center in Newburgh, New York.
5. Upon release from quarantine the animals will be delivered to
the zoological park named in this agreement to become the property
of the park and they will not be sold, exchanged or removed from the
premises without the prior consent of APHIS. If moved to another
zoological park in the United States, the receiving zoological park
must be approved by the Administrator in accordance with paragraph 6
of this agreement.
6. The Administrator will approve the movement of an imported
animal subject to this agreement if the Administrator determines
that the animal has spent at least one year in quarantine in a PEQ
Zoo following importation without showing clinical evidence of foot-
and-mouth disease, rinderpest, or other communicable disease, and
determines that the receiving zoological park is accredited by the
American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA), or the receiving
zoological park has facilities and procedures in place related to
preventing the spread of communicable animal diseases (including but
not limited to procedures for animal identification, record keeping,
and veterinary care) that are equivalent to those required for AZA
accreditation.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(Signature of importer)
Subscribed and sworn to before me this____________ day of
____________, ____________.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(Title or designation)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(Name of zoological park)
By---------------------------------------------------------------------
(Signature of officer of zoological park)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(Title of officer)
Subscribed and sworn to before me this ____________ day of
____________, ____________
.---------------------------------------------------------------------
(Title or designation)
(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control
number 0579-0040.)
[[Page 56169]]
Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of October 1996.
A. Strating,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 96-27976 Filed 10-30-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
