[Federal Register: April 26, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 79)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 21326-21328]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr26ap05-2]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. 05-011-1]
Asian Longhorned Beetle; Removal of Regulated Areas
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We are amending the Asian longhorned beetle regulations by
removing portions of Cook and DuPage Counties, IL, from the list of
quarantined areas and removing restrictions on the interstate movement
of regulated articles from those areas. We have determined that the
Asian longhorned beetle no longer presents a risk of spread from those
areas and that the quarantine and restrictions are no longer necessary.
DATES: This interim rule was effective April 21, 2005. We will consider
all comments that we receive on or before June 27, 2005.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
EDOCKET: Go to http://www.epa.gov/feddocket to submit or
view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the
official public docket, and to access those documents in the public
docket that are available electronically. Once you have entered
EDOCKET, click on the ``View Open APHIS Dockets'' link to locate this
document.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. 05-011-1,
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. 05-011-1.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov
and follow the instructions for locating this
docket and submitting comments.
Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on this
docket in our reading 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 on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html
.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael B. Stefan, Director, Pest
Detection and Management Programs, Emergency Programs, PPQ, APHIS, 4700
River Road Unit 134, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-7338.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) (Anoplophora glabripennis), an
insect native to China, Japan, Korea, and the Isle of Hainan, is a
destructive pest of
[[Page 21327]]
hardwood trees. It attacks many healthy hardwood trees, including
maple, horse chestnut, birch, poplar, willow, and elm. In addition,
nursery stock, logs, green lumber, firewood, stumps, roots, branches,
and wood debris of half an inch or more in diameter are subject to
infestation. The beetle bores into the heartwood of a host tree,
eventually killing the tree. Immature beetles bore into tree trunks and
branches, causing heavy sap flow from wounds and sawdust accumulation
at tree bases. They feed on, and over-winter in, the interiors of
trees. Adult beetles emerge in the spring and summer months from round
holes approximately three-eighths of an inch in diameter (about the
size of a dime) that they bore through branches and trunks of trees.
After emerging, adult beetles feed for 2 to 3 days and then mate. Adult
females then lay eggs in oviposition sites that they make on the
branches of trees. A new generation of ALB is produced each year. If
this pest moves into the hardwood forests of the United States, the
nursery, maple syrup, and forest product industries could experience
severe economic losses. In addition, urban and forest ALB infestations
will result in environmental damage, aesthetic deterioration, and a
reduction in public enjoyment of recreational spaces.
The ALB regulations in 7 CFR 301.51-1 through 301.51-9 (referred to
below as the regulations) restrict the interstate movement of regulated
articles from quarantined areas to prevent the artificial spread of ALB
to noninfested areas of the United States. Portions of Illinois, New
Jersey, and New York are designated as quarantined areas. Quarantined
areas are listed in Sec. 301.51-3 of the regulations.
The regulations currently list two quarantined areas in Illinois.
One, in Cook County, includes the Ravenswood community in the City of
Chicago, and the other, in Cook and DuPage Counties, includes portions
of O'Hare International Airport and its surrounding area.
Based on surveys conducted by inspectors of Illinois State and
county agencies and by APHIS inspectors, we are removing from
quarantine those areas in DuPage and Cook Counties and Chicago's
Ravenswood area. The last findings of ALB in the regulated area in Park
Ridge in Cook County was November 24, 2000. The last finding in the
regulated area around O'Hare International Airport, including
Bensenville, in DuPage County, was November 28, 2000. In Chicago's
Ravenswood area, the last finding in the Kilbourn Park community was
October 18, 1999, and the last finding in the Loyola community was
March 8, 2001.
Since then, no evidence of ALB infestation has been found in these
areas. Based on our experience, we have determined that sufficient time
has passed without finding additional beetles or other evidence of
infestation to conclude that ALB constitutes a negligible risk to those
areas in Cook and DuPage Counties and the Kilbourn Park and Loyola
communities in the Ravenswood area. Therefore, we are removing the
entries for these areas from the list of quarantined areas in Sec.
301.51-3(c). However, the Oz Park community in the City of Chicago,
which falls within the larger Ravenswood area, remains under
quarantine. A description of that quarantined area may be found in the
regulatory text at the end of this document.
Immediate Action
Immediate action is warranted to relieve restrictions that are no
longer necessary. Under these circumstances, the Administrator has
determined that prior notice and opportunity for public comment are
contrary to the public interest and that there is good cause under 5
U.S.C. 553 for making this action effective less than 30 days after
publication in the Federal Register.
We will consider comments we receive during the comment period for
this interim rule (see DATES above). After the comment period closes,
we will publish another document in the Federal Register. The document
will include a discussion of any comments we receive and any amendments
we are making to the rule.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
For this action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its
review under Executive Order 12866.
This emergency situation makes timely compliance with the
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) impracticable. We are
currently assessing the potential economic effects of this action on
small entities. Based on that assessment, we will either certify that
the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities or publish a regulatory flexibility analysis.
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.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This interim 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.
0
Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR part 301 as follows:
PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES
0
1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701-7772; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.
Section 301.75-15 also issued under Sec. 204, Title II, Pub. L.
106-113, 113 Stat. 1501A-293; sections 301.75-15 and 301.75-16 also
issued under Sec. 203, Title II, Pub. L. 106-224, 114 Stat. 400 (7
U.S.C. 1421 note).
0
2. In Sec. 301.51-3(c), under the heading ``Illinois,'' the entry for
Cook County is revised to read as follows and the entry for Cook and
DuPage Counties is removed.
Sec. 301.51-3 Quarantined areas.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
Illinois
Cook County. That area in the Oz Park community in the City of
Chicago that is bounded as follows: Beginning at the intersection of
North Damen Avenue and West Addison Street; then east and east-
northeast on West Addison Street to North Lake Shore Drive; then due
east from that point to the Lake Michigan shoreline; then south along
the Lake Michigan shoreline to a point due east of the intersection of
North Lake Shore Drive and Chicago Avenue; then west from that point to
the intersection of North Lake Shore Drive and Chicago Avenue; then
west on Chicago Avenue to North Damen Avenue; then north on
[[Page 21328]]
North Damen Avenue to the point of beginning.
* * * * *
Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of April 2005.
Elizabeth E. Gaston,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 05-8302 Filed 4-25-05; 8:45 am]
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