[Federal Register: March 10, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 45)]
[Notices]
[Page 10223-10224]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10mr09-31]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2008-0143]
Availability of an Environmental Assessment for a Biological
Control Agent for Russian Thistle
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has prepared an environmental assessment relative to
the control of Russian thistle, Salsola tragus. The environmental
assessment considers the effects of, and alternatives to, the release
of a nonindigenous blister mite, Aceria salsolae, for the biological
control of Russian thistle in the continental United States. We are
making the environmental assessment available to the public for review
and comment.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before April
9, 2009.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://
www.regulations.gov/ fdmspublic/component/
main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2008-0143 to submit or view comments and
to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send two copies of
your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2008-0143, Regulatory Analysis and
Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118,
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your comment refers to
Docket No. APHIS-2008-0143.
Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on the
environmental assessment in our reading room. The reading room is
located in room 1141 of the USDA
[[Page 10224]]
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: Additional information about APHIS and its
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Carmen Soileau, Senior
Entomolgist, Evaluation and Permitting of Regulated Organisms and Soil,
PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1237; (301)
734-5055.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is proposing
to issue permits for release of a nonindigenous blister mite, Aceria
salsolae, for the biological control of Russian thistle, Salsola
tragus, in the continental United States.
Russian thistle or tumbleweed, is a highly invasive weed native to
the mountainous regions of southwest Asia. Since the introduction of
Russian thistle to South Dakota in the early 1870s, it has spread
steadily throughout the central and western regions of the United
States and southern Canada. It is an agricultural pest that grows
primarily in fallow or disturbed soil, along roadsides and irrigation
canals, and in waste areas in arid and semiarid zones. During drought
periods, it can invade some habitats and displace native species. The
infestation of Russian thistle causes millions of dollars of damage by
disrupting automobile traffic, clogging irrigation canals, piling up
against fences and houses, and igniting and spreading wildfires.
There are currently several control methods for Russian thistle,
including herbicides, timed grazing, tilling, and other methods.
However, these approaches have proven to be ineffective. Therefore,
APHIS is proposing to issue permits for the release of a blister mite,
Aceria salsolae, into the environment for use as a biological control
agent to reduce the severity of Russian thistle infestations in the
continental United States.
The proposed biological control agent, A. salsolae, is a mite in
the insect family Eriophyid and can be found in Turkey, Uzbekistan, and
Greece. The mites are usually hidden in crevices of the leaf axils,
flowers, and fruits of the Russian thistle. They feed on the target
plant by inserting stylets (needle-like mouth parts) into plant cells
and feeding on the cell contents. After about 3 weeks, the leaf
meristems (growing tips) die and the mites use the wind to disperse to
fresh meristems. Feeding on epidermal cells in meristematic tissue
causes cell death of the leaf and flower meristems, thus stunting
growth of the plant and delaying and reducing reproduction.
The mite is not expected to directly harm any plants outside the
targeted Russian thistle (sensu lato). Host specific tests of A.
salsolae were conducted using a total of 39 species and 12 varieties of
host plants from 5 families, including 25 native species of North
America. After 4 weeks of laboratory experiments, no live mites were
found on any of the nontarget test plants outside the genus Salsola and
none of the nontarget plants showed any sign of feeding damage.
Furthermore, the results clearly show that there was no population
increase on these nontarget plant species, particularly in comparison
to the population growth observed on Russian thistle.
APHIS' review and analysis of the potential environmental impacts
associated with releasing a biological control agent, A. salsolae, into
the environment are documented in detail in an environmental assessment
(EA) entitled ``Field Release of Aceria salsolaea (Acari: Eriophyidae),
a Mite for Biological Control of Russian Thistle (Salsola tragus), in
the Continental United States'' (October 2008). We are making the EA
available to the public for review and comment. We will consider all
comments that we receive on or before the date listed under the heading
DATES at the beginning of this notice.
The EA may be viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site or in our
reading room (see ADDRESSES above for instructions for accessing
Regulations.gov and information on the location and hours of the
reading room). You may request paper copies of the EA by calling or
writing to the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Please refer to the title of the EA when requesting copies.
The EA has been prepared in accordance with: (1) The National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.), (2) regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality for
implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-
1508), (3) USDA regulations implementing NEPA (7 CFR part 1), and (4)
APHIS' NEPA Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 372).
Done in Washington, DC, this 4th day of March 2009.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E9-5043 Filed 3-9-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P