[Federal Register: November 24, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 226)]
[Notices]
[Page 68301-68302]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr24no04-30]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. 04-076-2]
Monsanto Co.; Availability of Petition and Environmental
Assessment for Determination of Nonregulated Status for Cotton
Genetically Engineered for Tolerance to the Herbicide Glyphosate
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: We are advising the public of the availability of an addendum
to a petition from Monsanto Company seeking a determination of
nonregulated status for cotton designated as MON 88913, which has been
genetically engineered for tolerance to the herbicide glyphosate. The
petition has been submitted in accordance with our regulations
concerning the introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms
and products. In accordance with those regulations, we are soliciting
public comments on whether this cotton presents a plant pest risk. We
are also making available for public comment an environmental
assessment for the proposed determination of nonregulated status. The
content of the addendum does not impact the environmental assessment.
However, the information contained within the addendum may add clarity
to the review of the petition by the public.
DATES: We will consider all comments we receive on or before December
3, 2004.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. 04-076-1,
Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3C71, 4700
River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your
comment refers to Docket No. 04-076-1.
E-mail: Address your comment to
regulations@aphis.usda.gov. Your comment must be contained in the body
of your message; do not send attached files.
Agency Web Site: Go to http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/cominst.html
for a form you can use to submit an e-mail comment through
the APHIS Web site.
Reading Room: You may read the amended petition, the environmental
assessment, and any comments that we receive on this docket in our
reading
[[Page 68302]]
room. The reading room 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.
Other Information: You may view APHIS documents published in the
Federal Register and related information, including the names of groups
and individuals who have commented on APHIS dockets, on the Internet at
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Blanchette, Biotechnology
Regulatory Services, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 147, Riverdale, MD
20737-1236; (301) 734-5141. To obtain copies of the amended petition or
the environmental assessment, contact Ms. Terry Hampton at (301) 734-
5715; e-mail: Terry.A.Hampton@aphis.usda.gov. The amended petition and
environmental assessment are also available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/brs/aphisdocs/04_08601p.pdf and http://www.aphis.usda.gov/brs/aphisdocs/04_08601p_ea.pdf.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 4, 2004, we published a notice in
the Federal Register (69 FR 59181-59182, Docket No. 04-076-1) in which
we advised the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS) has received a petition from Monsanto Company of St.
Louis, MO (Monsanto) seeking a determination of nonregulated status for
cotton designated as MON 88913, which has been genetically engineered
for tolerance to the herbicide glyphosate. The petition has been
submitted in accordance with our regulations concerning the
introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms and products.
In accordance with those regulations, our notice solicits public
comments on whether this cotton presents a plant pest risk. In the
notice, we also made available for public comment an environmental
assessment (EA) for the proposed determination of nonregulated status.
As stated in that notice, we will consider all comments we receive on
or before December 3, 2004.
On November 8, 2004, APHIS received a letter from Monsanto amending
the petition made available for public comment in our October 4, 2004,
notice. The information in the addendum clarifies information in the
petition with respect to the molecular genetic characterization of the
inserted DNA and corrects portions of that section. APHIS promptly
reviewed these changes and determined that they had no impact on the EA
we prepared to examine any environmental impacts of the proposed
determination for the subject cotton. The addendum has been added to
the petition file and is available to facilitate the review of the
petition.
We continue to solicit written comments from interested persons on
the petition and the EA. In addition to the amended petition, the EA
and any comments received are available for public review. Copies of
the amended petition and the EA are available as indicated in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this notice.
After the comment period closes, APHIS will review the data
submitted by the petitioner, all written comments received during the
comment period, and any other relevant information. After reviewing and
evaluating the comments on the petition and the EA and other data and
information, APHIS will furnish a response to the petitioner, either
approving the petition in whole or in part, or denying the petition.
APHIS will then publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing the
regulatory status of Monsanto's glyphosate-tolerant MON 88913 cotton
and the availability of APHIS' written decision.
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622n and 7701-7772; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22,
2.80, and 371.3.
Done in Washington, DC, this 18th day of November 2004.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E4-3316 Filed 11-23-04; 8:45 am]
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