[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 7, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 725-726]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-31471]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R9-IA-2008-N0350; 96100-1671-000-P5]
Harvest and Export of American Ginseng
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice: announcement of public meeting; request for information
from the public.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a
public meeting on American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius). This meeting
will help us gather information from the public in preparation of our
2009 findings on the export of American ginseng roots, for the issuance
of permits under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
DATES: The meeting date is February 24, 2009. An information session
will occur at 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., followed by a public meeting at 2 p.m.
to 5:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The meeting location is: Bristol, VA--Holiday Inn Hotel and
Suites, Bristol Convention Center, 3005 Linden Drive, Bristol, VA
24202; telephone number: (276) 466-4100.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, or directions
to the meeting, contact Ms. Pat Ford, Division of Scientific Authority,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 110,
Arlington, VA 22203; 703-358-1708 (telephone), 703-358-2276 (fax), or
[email protected] (e-mail).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora (CITES, or Convention) is an international treaty
designed to control and regulate international trade in certain animal
and plant species that are now or potentially may be threatened with
extinction by international trade. Currently, 174 countries, including
the United States, are Parties to CITES. The species for which trade is
controlled are listed in Appendix I, II, or III of the Convention.
Appendix I includes species threatened with extinction that are or may
be affected by international trade. Commercial trade in Appendix-I
species is generally prohibited. Appendix II includes species that,
although not necessarily threatened with extinction at the present
time, may become so unless their trade is strictly controlled through a
system of export permits. Appendix II also includes species that CITES
must regulate so that trade in other listed species may be brought
under effective control (e.g., because of similarity of appearance
between listed species and other species). Appendix III comprises
species subject to regulation within the jurisdiction of any CITES
Party country to enlist the cooperation of the other Parties in
regulating international trade in the species.
American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) was listed in Appendix II of
CITES on July 1, 1975. The Division of Scientific Authority and the
Division of Management Authority of the Service regulate the export of
American ginseng, including whole live or dead plants, whole and sliced
roots, and parts of roots. To meet CITES requirements for export of
American ginseng from the United States, the Division of Scientific
Authority must determine that the export will not be detrimental to the
survival of the species, and the Division of Management Authority must
be satisfied that the American ginseng roots to be exported were
legally acquired.
The Divisions of Scientific Authority and Management Authority make
the required findings on a State-by-State basis. To determine whether
or not to approve exports of American ginseng, the Division of
Scientific Authority reviews available information from various sources
(other Federal agencies, State regulatory agencies, industry and
associations, nongovernmental organizations, and academic researchers)
on the biology and trade status of the species. After a thorough
review, the Division of Scientific Authority makes a non-detriment
finding and the Division of Management Authority makes a legal
acquisition finding on the export of American ginseng to be harvested
during the year(s) in question. With the exception of 2005, from 1999
through 2008, the Division of Scientific Authority included in its non-
detriment findings for the export of wild and wild-simulated American
ginseng roots an age-based restriction (i.e., plants must be at least 5
years old).
States with harvest programs for wild and artificially propagated
American ginseng are: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana,
Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, North
Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West
Virginia, and Wisconsin. States with harvest programs for only
artificially propagated American ginseng are: Idaho, Maine, Michigan,
North Dakota, Oregon, and Washington.
The Divisions of Scientific Authority and Management Authority will
host an American ginseng workshop from February 24 through 26, 2009, in
Bristol, Virginia, with representatives of State and Federal agencies
that regulate the species, to discuss the status and management of
American ginseng and the CITES export program for the species. This
workshop will provide an important opportunity for representatives of
the States and Federal agencies to discuss and consider improvements to
the CITES export program for this species. Except for the session on
February 24, 2009, this meeting will be closed to the public.
Information from the 2009 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's American
ginseng workshop will be available from our Web site at: http://www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/plants/ginseng.html;
information will also be available upon request from the Division of
Scientific Authority (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Public Meeting
We invite the public to listen to academic and Federal government
researchers, who will present their most recent research findings on
American ginseng, and other invited speakers on February 24, 2009, in
Bristol, VA., from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. (with a lunch break at attendees'
expense). After these presentations, from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., we will
hold an open public meeting (a
[[Page 726]]
listening session) to hear from anyone involved or interested in
American ginseng conservation, harvest, and trade. We are particularly
interested in obtaining any current information on the status of
American ginseng in the wild, and other pertinent information on the
conservation and management of the species that would contribute to
making the required CITES findings and improve the CITES export program
for American ginseng. We will discuss the Federal regulatory framework
for the export of American ginseng and the regulations that control the
international trade of this species. We will also discuss the different
CITES definitions as they are applied to American ginseng grown under
different production systems and how we approach these different
systems in regulating the export of American ginseng roots.
Persons planning to attend the February 24, 2009, meeting who
require interpretation for the hearing impaired must notify the
Division of Scientific Authority by January 23, 2009 (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT).
Author
The primary author of this notice is Patricia Ford, the Division of
Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Dated: December 22, 2008.
Kenneth Stansell,
Acting Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E8-31471 Filed 1-6-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P