[Federal Register: June 8, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 109)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 32310-32313]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08jn10-28]
[[Page 32310]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 319
[Docket No. APHIS-2010-0022]
RIN 0579-AD14
Importation of Fresh Unshu Oranges from the Republic of Korea
into the Continental United States
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend the regulations concerning the
importation of citrus fruit to remove certain restrictions on the
importation of Unshu oranges from the Republic of Korea that are no
longer necessary. Specifically, we propose to remove requirements for
the fruit to be grown in specified canker-free export areas and for
joint inspection in the groves and packinghouses by the Government of
the Republic of Korea and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service. We would also clarify that surface sterilization of the fruit
must be conducted in accordance with 7 CFR part 305, and we would
expand the area in the continental United States where Unshu oranges
from the Republic of Korea may be distributed. Finally, we would
require that each shipment be accompanied by a phytosanitary
certificate containing an additional declaration stating that the fruit
was given the required surface sterilization and inspected and found
free of Elsinoe australis. These proposed changes would make the
regulations concerning the importation of Unshu oranges from the
Republic of Korea consistent with our domestic regulations concerning
the interstate movement of citrus fruit from areas quarantined because
of citrus canker.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
August 9, 2010.
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-2010-0022) to submit or view comments
and to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send one copy of
your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2010-0022, 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-2010-0022.
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: Additional information about APHIS and its
programs is available on the Internet at (http://www.aphis.usda.gov).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Meredith C. Jones, Regulatory
Coordination Specialist, Regulations, Permits, and Manuals, PPQ, APHIS,
4700 River Road Unit 156, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 734-7467.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Citrus canker is a disease that affects citrus and is caused by the
infectious bacterium Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri. Currently, the
regulations in 7 CFR 319.28 (referred to below as the regulations)
allow the importation of Unshu oranges (Citrus reticulata var. unshu)
from certain areas in Japan and from Cheju Island, Republic of Korea
(South Korea), into the United States under permit and after the
specified safeguards of a preclearance program have been met to prevent
the introduction of citrus canker.
Under the current regulations, Unshu oranges intended for export to
the United States from the specified regions in Japan and South Korea
must be grown and packed in isolated, canker-free export areas
established by the national plant protection organization (NPPO) of the
country of origin. The regulations also require the joint inspection of
the fruit by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of
the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the NPPO of the country
of origin in the groves prior to and during harvest, and in the
packinghouses during packing operations. Surface sterilization of the
fruit, as prescribed by the USDA, is required prior to packing. Because
commercial citrus-producing areas in the United States have a higher
density of citrus plantings than do other areas and unless adequate
risk mitigation measures are in place may be more susceptible to the
introduction of citrus diseases, Unshu oranges from Cheju Island, South
Korea, cannot be imported under the existing regulations into American
Samoa, Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, the Northern
Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands
(referred to collectively in this document as commercial citrus-
producing States).
Currently, Unshu oranges from South Korea are only being imported
into Alaska. Importation of Unshu oranges from South Korea into other
authorized areas of the United States was administratively suspended in
2002 due to an increased number of interceptions of fruit with symptoms
of citrus canker during inspection at various packinghouses in South
Korea. In 2005, however, the NPPO of South Korea requested that APHIS
allow the importation of Unshu oranges into the State of Alaska until
the pest risks associated with Unshu oranges from South Korea could be
mitigated to a level sufficient to allow shipments to resume to the
rest of the United States. In response to that request, APHIS prepared
a pest risk analysis (PRA), and on October 25, 2007, we published in
the Federal Register (72 FR 60537-60541, Docket No. APHIS-2006-0133) a
final rule allowing Unshu oranges into Alaska, provided that the
oranges were prepared for shipping in accordance with our requirements
for culling, cleaning, and labeling and were accompanied by a
phytosanitary certificate stating that the fruit was inspected and
determined to be free of citrus canker and arrowhead scale.
The NPPO of the Republic of Korea has more recently submitted a
request to APHIS to allow the importation of Unshu oranges from Cheju
Island, Republic of Korea, into the continental United States. In
response to that request, we have developed an updated PRA, which is
based on the previous PRA for imports into Alaska and which
incorporates new evidence found in the ensuing 2 years. The updated PRA
can be viewed on the Internet on the Regulations.gov Web site or in our
reading room.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Instructions on accessing Regulations.gov and information on
the location and hours of the reading room may be found at the
beginning of this document under ADDRESSES. You may also request
paper copies of the risk analysis by calling or writing the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The updated PRA, ``Importation of Unshu Orange Fruit, Citrus
reticulata Blanco var. unshu Swingle, from Korea into the Continental
United States'' (December 2009), identifies two pests, Xanthomonas
citri subsp. citri and Elsinoe australis (the causal agents of
[[Page 32311]]
citrus canker and sweet orange scab, respectively), that are associated
with Unshu oranges as quarantine pests. A quarantine pest is defined by
the International Plant Protection Convention as ``a pest of potential
economic importance to the area endangered thereby and not yet present
there, or present but not widely distributed and being officially
controlled.''\2\ Elsinoe australis, which we have considered to be a
quarantine pest, had not been identified previously as such in relation
to the importation of Unshu oranges from South Korea because it had not
been known to be present in that country. It was detected in South
Korea, however, in 2009. Conversely, arrowhead scale, Unaspis
yanonensis, which we had identified as a quarantine pest in the earlier
version of the PRA that we published in conjunction with the rulemaking
allowing Unshu oranges from South Korea to be imported into Alaska,
does not fall into that category in the updated PRA. A recent critical
review of the scientific literature and our own operational data led us
to conclude that, even assuming high quantities of imported fruit
infested with armored scale species, such as arrowhead scale, the
specific pathway represented by commercially produced fruit shipped
without leaves, stems, or contaminants, in accordance with our general
requirements for the importation of fruits and vegetables in Sec.
319.56-3, poses an extremely low risk of introducing such pests to the
U.S. citrus crop.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ International Plant Protection Convention Glossary, (https:/
/www.ippc.int/index.php?id=1110483), 2007.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In our updated PRA, the two identified quarantine pests,
Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri and Elsinoe australis, were rated as
having a medium pest risk potential. Pests receiving a rating within
the medium range may require specific phytosanitary measures in
addition to standard port-of-entry inspection.
The PRA included a risk management document outlining the
conditions under which Unshu oranges from Cheju Island, Republic of
Korea, could safely be imported into the continental United States and
Alaska. The conditions include surface treatment of the fruit in
accordance with 7 CFR part 305 prior to packing, registration of the
packinghouse in which the treatment is applied and the fruit is packed
with the NPPO of South Korea, and certification that the fruit has been
treated in accordance with the regulations and has been inspected and
found to be free of sweet orange scab. Scientific evidence indicates
that commercially packed and disinfected fresh citrus fruit is not an
epidemiologically significant pathway for the spread of Xanthomonas
citri subsp. citri. Therefore, Unshu oranges from South Korea meeting
those conditions can be imported into the United States without posing
an epidemiologically significant risk to the U.S. citrus crop of
infection with citrus canker. Inspection by the NPPO of South Korea of
Unshu oranges for symptoms of sweet orange scab prior to export is
considered to offer adequate protection against introducing that
disease to the U.S. citrus crop because the symptoms can be detected if
present, and if the symptoms are not present, the Unshu oranges are
unlikely to be a pathway for sweet orange scab.
We are therefore proposing to incorporate those requirements into
the regulations in Sec. 319.28 pertaining to the importation of Unshu
oranges from South Korea. (As noted above, the existing regulations do
require surface sterilization of the fruit as prescribed by the USDA.
Because we have determined that the use of a post-harvest disinfectant
in accordance with 7 CFR part 305 is the most effective mitigation for
citrus canker, we are proposing to state explicitly that the treatment
must be conducted in accordance with part 305.)\3\ We are also
proposing additional changes that would eliminate certain requirements
associated with the importation of Unshu oranges from South Korea that
we consider no longer to be necessary. Specifically, we would remove
the requirements for the oranges to be grown in specified canker-free
areas and for joint inspection of the fruit by the South Korean NPPO
and APHIS prior to and during harvest and in the packinghouses during
packing operations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Part 305 contains requirements for administering approved
treatments. As noted in Sec. 305.2(b), approved treatment schedules
are set out in the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual,
available at (http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/
manuals/ports/treatment.shtml). The approved citrus canker treatment
schedule for imported citrus fruit is the same as that for domestic
citrus fruit.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some of the changes we are proposing, in addition to eliminating
restrictions that are no longer necessary, would also help to harmonize
the regulations with our domestic citrus canker regulations. In a final
rule published in the Federal Register on October 22, 2009 (74 FR
54431-54445, Docket No. APHIS-2009-0023), we amended the conditions
under which fruit may be moved interstate from an area quarantined for
citrus canker by removing certain restrictions that we considered to be
no longer necessary. That final rule removed a requirement for an APHIS
inspector to be in the packinghouse and inspect fruit leaving an area
quarantined for citrus canker, as well as a prohibition on the
interstate movement of citrus fruit from quarantined areas to
commercial citrus-producing States. Our proposed removal of the
requirements for Unshu oranges exported to the United States to have
been produced in specified canker-free areas and jointly inspected by
the NPPO of South Korea and APHIS in the groves and packinghouses, and
our proposed removal of the prohibition on the exportation of the fruit
into commercial citrus-producing States in the continental United
States would parallel those changes to the domestic regulations.
Similarly, our proposed requirement that South Korean packinghouses be
registered with the NPPO of South Korea would also contribute to
harmonizing our import requirements with our domestic ones by
paralleling a requirement in Sec. 301.75-7 that owners or operators of
packinghouses where packing of fruit regulated for citrus canker occurs
enter into compliance agreements with APHIS.
Reorganization of the Regulations Pertaining to the Importation of
Unshu Oranges
The requirements for the importation of Unshu oranges from Japan
and South Korea are contained in Sec. 319.28(b) and (c) of the current
regulations. Paragraph (b) contains provisions applicable to imports
from both countries, while the requirements governing the importation
of Unshu oranges from South Korea into Alaska, codified in our October
2007 final rule, are found in paragraph (c). Because our PRA covered
imports from South Korea only, we are not proposing to make any changes
at this time to the requirements regarding the importation of Unshu
oranges from Japan. The import requirements discussed in paragraph (b)
that heretofore have applied to both countries would, under this
proposed rule, remain in effect only for Japan. It is, therefore,
necessary to reorganize paragraphs (b) and (c) of Sec. 319.28 to
separate the provisions for South Korea and Japan. Under this proposed
rule, the requirements for the importation of Unshu oranges from Japan
would continue to be contained in paragraph (b). The proposed
requirements discussed above pertaining to the importation of Unshu
oranges from South Korea would be located in paragraph (c). Since the
importation of Unshu oranges into
[[Page 32312]]
Alaska would be subject to the same conditions as fruit imported into
other areas of the United States, the Alaska-specific requirements
contained in current paragraph (c) would be removed.
Proposed paragraph (c)(1) would state that before packing, the
oranges would have to be given a surface sterilization in accordance
with part 305. Paragraph (c)(2) would contain the requirement for the
packinghouse to be registered with the NPPO of the Republic of Korea.
Paragraph (c)(3) would state that the oranges would have to be
accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of South
Korea that would include an additional declaration stating that the
fruit was subjected to the required sterilization and was inspected and
found free of Elsinoe australis, the causal agent of sweet orange scab.
Finally, paragraph (c)(4) would state that the Unshu oranges could be
imported into any area of the United States except Hawaii and the U.S.
territories listed in that paragraph. The PRA did not evaluate the risk
of importing Unshu oranges from South Korea into Hawaii and the listed
territories, so we would not remove the restrictions on such imports.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for
the purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget.
In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, we have analyzed
the potential economic effects of this action on small entities. The
analysis is summarized below. Copies of the full analysis are available
by contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
or on the Regulations.gov Web site (see ADDRESSES above for
instructions for accessing Regulations.gov).
This proposed rule would remove certain restrictions on the
importation of Unshu oranges from South Korea that are no longer
necessary and expand the area in the continental United States where
Unshus from South Korea may be distributed.
The impact of Unshu orange imports from South Korea is expected to
be minimal for U.S. domestic producers. The United States does not
commercially produce Unshu oranges, and price differences suggest that
they are not a close substitute for U.S.-grown mandarin varieties, such
as tangerines. Effects of the proposed rule in terms of product
displacement may be borne by Japanese exporters, since Japan is
currently the other major supplier of Unshu oranges to the United
States.
Even if all Unshu orange imports from South Korea were to directly
replace a portion of U.S.-grown tangerine consumption, the effect on
U.S. producers would be still insignificant. Under such a scenario,
annual imports of Unshu oranges from South Korea of 2,000 metric tons
(the upper limit of the projected range of imports, which would well
surpass the peak import volume of 1,611 metric tons recorded in 2002)
would displace only 0.6 percent of fresh tangerines produced by U.S.
operations in 2008-2009. Even a small impact such as this for U.S.
producers is highly unlikely.
Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule would allow Unshu oranges to be imported into
the United States from Cheju Island, Republic of Korea. If this
proposed rule is adopted, State and local laws and regulations
regarding Unshu oranges imported under this rule would be preempted
while the fruit is in foreign commerce. Fresh fruits and vegetables are
generally imported for immediate distribution and sale to the consuming
public and would remain in foreign commerce until sold to the ultimate
consumer. The question of when foreign commerce ceases in other cases
must be addressed on a case-by-case basis. If this proposed rule is
adopted, no retroactive effect will be given to this rule, and this
rule will not require administrative proceedings before parties may
file suit in court challenging this rule.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This proposed rule contains no new 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 319
Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Imports, Logs, Nursery stock, Plant
diseases and pests, Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Rice, Vegetables.
Accordingly, we propose to amend 7 CFR part 319 as follows:
PART 319-FOREIGN QUARANTINE NOTICES
1. The authority citation for part 319 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701-7772, and 7781-7786; 21 U.S.C. 136
and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.
2. Section 319.28 is amended by revising paragraphs (b) and (c) to
read as follows:
Sec. 319.28 Notice of quarantine.
* * * * *
(b) Unshu oranges from Japan. The prohibition does not apply to
Unshu oranges (Citrus reticulata Blanco var. unshu, Swingle [Citrus
unshiu Marcovitch, Tanaka]), also known as Satsuma mandarin, grown in
Japan and imported under permit into any area of the United States
except for those areas specified in paragraph (b)(7) of this section:
Provided, that each of the following safeguards is fully carried out:
(1) The Unshu oranges must be grown and packed in isolated, canker-
free export areas established by the plant protection service of Japan.
Only Unshu orange trees may be grown in these areas, which must be kept
free of all citrus other than the propagative material of Unshu
oranges. The export areas must be inspected and found free of citrus
canker and prohibited plant material by qualified plant protection
officers of both Japan and the United States. The export areas must be
surrounded by 400-meter-wide buffer zones. The buffer zones must be
kept free of all citrus other than the following 10 varieties: Buntan
Hirado (Citrus grandis); Buntan Vietnam (C. grandis); Hassaku (C.
hassaku); Hyuganatsu (C. tamurana); Kinkan (Fortunella spp. non
Fortunella hindsii); Kiyomi tangor (hybrid); Orange Hyuga (C.
tamurana); Ponkan (C. reticulata); Unshu (C. unshiu Marcovitch, Tanaka
[Citrus reticulata Blanco var. unshu, Swingle]); and Yuzu (C. junos).
The buffer zones must be inspected and found free of citrus canker and
prohibited plant material by qualified plant protection officers of
both Japan and the United States.
(2) In Unshu orange export areas and buffer zones on Kyushu Island,
Japan, trapping for the citrus fruit fly (Bactrocera tsuneonis) must be
conducted as prescribed by the Japanese Government's Ministry of
Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries and the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. If fruit flies are detected, then shipping will be
suspended from the export area until negative trapping shows the
problem has been resolved.
(3) Inspection of the Unshu oranges shall be performed jointly by
plant protection officers of Japan and the United States in the groves
prior to and during harvest, and in the packinghouses during packing
operations.
[[Page 32313]]
(4) Before packing, such oranges shall be given a surface
sterilization as prescribed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
(5) To be eligible for importation into Arizona, California,
Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, or Texas, each shipment of oranges grown on
Honshu Island or Shikoku Island, Japan, must be fumigated with methyl
bromide in accordance with part 305 of this chapter after harvest and
prior to exportation to the United States. Fumigation will not be
required for shipments of oranges grown on Honshu Island or Shikoku
Island, Japan, that are to be imported into States other than Arizona,
California, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, or Texas.
(6) The identity of the fruit shall be maintained in the following
manner:
(i) The individual boxes in which the oranges are shipped must be
stamped or printed with a statement specifying the States into which
the Unshu oranges may be imported, and from which they are prohibited
removal under a Federal plant quarantine.
(ii) Each shipment of oranges handled in accordance with these
procedures shall be accompanied by a certificate of the plant
protection service of Japan certifying that the fruit is apparently
free of citrus canker disease.
(7) The Unshu oranges may be imported into the United States only
through a port of entry identified in Sec. 319.37-14 that is located
in an area of the United States into which their importation is
authorized. The following importation restrictions apply:
(i) Unshu oranges from Honshu Island or Shikoku Island, Japan, that
have been fumigated in accordance with part 305 of this chapter may be
imported into any area of the United States except American Samoa, the
Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
(ii) Unshu oranges from Honshu Island or Shikoku Island, Japan, and
from Kyushu Island, Japan (Prefectures of Fukuoka, Kumanmoto, Nagasaki,
and Saga only), that have not been fumigated in accordance with part
305 of this chapter may be imported into any area of the United States
except American Samoa, Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana,
the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin
Islands.
(c) Unshu oranges from the Republic of Korea. The prohibition does
not apply to Unshu oranges (Citrus reticulata Blanco var. unshu,
Swingle [Citrus unshiu Marcovitch, Tanaka]), also known as Satsuma
mandarin, grown on Cheju Island, Republic of Korea, and imported under
permit into any area of the United States except for those specified in
paragraph (c)(4) of this section, Provided, that each of the following
safeguards is fully carried out:
(1) Before packing, such oranges shall be given a surface
sterilization in accordance with part 305 of this chapter.
(2) The packinghouse in which the surface sterilization treatment
is applied and the fruit is packed must be registered with the national
plant protection organization of the Republic of Korea.
(3) The Unshu oranges must be accompanied by a phytosanitary
certificate issued by the national plant protection organization of the
Republic of Korea, which includes an additional declaration stating
that the fruit was given a surface sterilization in accordance with 7
CFR part 305 and was inspected and found free of Elsinoe australis.
(4) The Unshu oranges may be imported into any area of the United
States except American Samoa, Hawaii, the Northern Mariana Islands,
Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
* * * * *
Done in Washington, DC, this 2\nd\ day of June 2010.
Kevin Shea
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-13718 Filed 6-7-10; 6:37 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-S