[Federal Register: July 29, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 145)]
[Notices]
[Page 43838-43839]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29jy05-45]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. 04-081-2]
Notice of Availability of a Document Concerning the
Identification of EU Administrative Units
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that we are finalizing, with minor
changes, a draft document that had been prepared by the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service to identify the smallest administrative
jurisdictions within 11 Member States of the European Union that we
would consider ``regions'' in the event of future animal disease
outbreaks. The draft document referred to these jurisdictions as
``administrative units'' and also reevaluated the administrative units
already identified for Italy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Chip Wells, Senior Staff
Veterinarian, Regionalization Evaluation Services Staff, National
Center for Import and Export, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 38,
Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-4356.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On April 21, 2005, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) published in the Federal Register a notice (70 FR 20733-20734,
Docket No. 04-081-1) in which we announced the availability of, and
requested comments on, a draft document entitled ``APHIS Considerations
on the Identification of Administrative Units for Certain Member States
of the European Union.'' This draft document identified the smallest
administrative jurisdictions within 11 Member States of the European
Union (EU) that we would consider ``regions'' in the event of future
animal disease outbreaks. In the draft document we referred to those
regions as ``administrative units'' (AUs). These Member States are:
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, the
Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. We also
reevaluated the AUs already identified for Italy.
Comments on the draft document were required to be received on or
before June 20, 2005. We received one comment by that date, from the
European Communities (EC). The EC was generally supportive of the draft
document, however they requested confirmation that APHIS intends to
implement regionalization of Member States of the EU to the AU level
for other animal diseases in addition to classical swine fever. As
stated in the notice, the concept of regionalization to the AU level is
not disease-specific and would apply for all animal diseases.
The EC also requested that APHIS identify AUs in the 10 new EU
Member States which APHIS would consider the smallest possible
administrative jurisdiction with effective control over animal movement
and control of animal disease in those Member States. APHIS plans to
identify AUs for the 10 new EU Member States as those countries are
evaluated. In November 2004, APHIS' Veterinary Services (VS) conducted
site visits to Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, and Lithuania, and site
visits to Slovenia
[[Page 43839]]
and Estonia are planned for fall 2005. Site visits to the Czech
Republic and Latvia are currently underway. VS plans to identify the
appropriate AU for each of these Member States in the risk analyses
that result from their evaluations. At this time, VS has not received
sufficient information from Malta and Cyprus to begin its evaluations
in those Member States.
The EC also stated that the name of the Swedish governmental
agencies mentioned on page 13 of the draft document were not correctly
translated. We have corrected those errors in the finalized version of
the document and use the proper translations provided by the EC. The
final version of the document with those changes may be viewed on the
Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ncie/reg-request.html. At the
bottom of that Web site page, click on ``Information previously
submitted by Regions requesting export approval and supporting
documentation.'' At the next screen, click on the triangle beside
``European Union/Not Specified/Classical Swine Fever,'' then click on
the triangle beside ``Response by APHIS,'' which will reveal a link to
the document.
Done in Washington, DC, this 25th day of July 2005.
Elizabeth E. Gaston,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E5-4061 Filed 7-28-05; 8:45 am]
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