Asian Longhorned Beetle; Addition to Quarantined Areas

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 301

[Docket No. 99-033-1]

Asian Longhorned Beetle; Addition to Quarantined 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

expanding the quarantined areas in the State of New York to include new

areas in New York City and in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. As a result

of this action, the interstate movement of regulated articles from

those areas are restricted. This action is necessary on an emergency

basis to prevent the artificial spread of the Asian longhorned beetle

to noninfested areas of the United States.

DATES: This interim rule is effective May 21, 1999. We invite you to

comment on this docket. We will consider all comments that we receive

by July 26, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comment and three copies to: Docket No. 99-

033-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03,

4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that

your comment refers to Docket No. 99-033-1.

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.

APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related

information, including the names of

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organizations and individuals who have commented on APHIS rules, are

available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/

webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Ronald P. Milberg, Operations

Officer, Program Support, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 134,

Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-5255; or e-mail:

Ron.P.M[email protected].

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 hardwood trees. It is known to attack healthy

maple, horse chestnut, birch, Rose of Sharon, poplar, willow, elm,

locust, mulberry, chinaberry, apple, cherry, pear, and citrus trees. It

may also attack other species of hardwood trees. In addition, nursery

stock, logs, green lumber, firewood, stumps, roots, branches, and

debris of a half an inch or more in diameter are subject to

infestation. The beetle bores into the heartwood of a host tree,

eventually killing it. 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 3/8-inch diameter (about the size of a dime) that

they bore through the 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 and forest products

industries could experience severe economic losses.

The Asian longhorned beetle regulations (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 New York City and Nassau and Suffolk Counties in the State

of New York and portions of the city of Chicago, DuPage County, and the

village of Summit in the State of Illinois are already designated as

quarantined areas.

Recent surveys conducted by inspectors of New York State, county,

and city agencies and by inspectors of the Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service (APHIS) have revealed that infestations of ALB have

occurred outside the quarantined areas in the State of New York.

Specifically, infestations have been found outside the quarantined

areas in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens and in Nassau and Suffolk

Counties. Officials of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and officials

of State, county, and city agencies in New York are conducting an

intensive survey and eradication program in the infested areas. The

State of New York has quarantined the infested areas and is restricting

the intrastate movement of regulated articles from the quarantined

areas to prevent the artificial spread of ALB within the State.

However, Federal regulations are necessary to restrict the interstate

movement of regulated articles from the quarantined area to prevent the

artificial spread of ALB to other States and Canada.

The regulations in Sec. 301.51-3(a) provide that the Administrator

of APHIS will list as a quarantined area each State, or each portion of

a State, in which ALB has been found by an inspector, in which the

Administrator has reason to believe that ALB is present, or that the

Administrator considers necessary to regulate because of its

inseparability for quarantine enforcement purposes from localities

where ALB has been found.

Less than an entire State will be designated as a quarantined area

only if the Administrator determines that the State has adopted and is

enforcing restrictions on the intrastate movement of regulated articles

that are equivalent to those imposed by the regulations on the

interstate movement of regulated articles and the designation of less

than an entire State as a quarantined area will be adequate to prevent

the artificial spread of ALB.

In accordance with these criteria and the recent ALB findings

described above, we are amending Sec. 301.51-3(c) by expanding the

quarantined areas in New York City and in Nassau and Suffolk Counties

in the State of New York. The new quarantined areas are described in

the rule portion of this document.

Emergency Action

The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

has determined that an emergency exists that warrants publication of

this interim rule without prior opportunity for public comment.

Immediate action is necessary to prevent the ALB from spreading to

noninfested areas of the United States.

Because prior notice and other public procedures with respect to

this action are impracticable and contrary to the public interest under

these conditions, we find good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 to make this

action effective upon signature. We will consider comments that are

received within 60 days of publication of this rule in the Federal

Register. 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 as a result of the comments.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

This emergency situation makes compliance with section 603 and

timely compliance with section 604 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5

U.S.C. 601 et seq.) impracticable. If we determine that this rule would

have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities, then we will discuss the issues raised by section 604 of the

Regulatory Flexibility Act in our Final 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.

National Environmental Policy Act

An environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact

have been prepared for this program. The assessment provides a basis

for the conclusion that a Federal quarantine for ALB will not have a

significant impact on the quality of the human environment. Based on

the finding of no significant impact, the Administrator of the Animal

and Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that an

environmental impact statement need not be prepared.

The environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact

were prepared in accordance with: (1) The National Environmental Policy

Act of

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1969, as amended (NEPA) (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 1b), and (4) APHIS' NEPA Implementing

Procedures (7 CFR part 372).

Copies of the environmental assessment and finding of no

significant impact are available for public inspection at USDA, room

1141, South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except holidays. Persons wishing to inspect copies are requested to

call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to facilitate entry into the reading room.

In addition, copies may be obtained by writing to the individual listed

under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, by calling the Plant Protection

and Quarantine Fax Service at (301) 734-3560, or by visiting the

following Internet site: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/ead/

ppqdocs.html.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This 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.

Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR part 301 as follows:

PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES

1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 147a, 150bb, 150dd, 150ee, 150ff, 161, 162,

and 164-167; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(c).

2. In Sec. 301.51-3, paragraph (c) is amended by revising the entry

for the State of New York to read as follows:

Sec. 301.51-3 Quarantined areas.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

* * * * *

New York

New York City. That area in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens in

the city of New York that is bounded as follows: Beginning at the point

where the Manhattan Bridge intersects the bank of the East River; then

south from the Manhattan Bridge along Flatbush Avenue to Lafayette

Avenue; then east along Lafayette Avenue to Himrod Street; then

northeast along Himrod Street to Myrtle Avenue; then east along Myrtle

Avenue to Fresh Pond Road; then north along Fresh Pond Road to Flushing

Avenue; then northeast along Flushing Avenue to Grand Avenue; then

northeast along Grand Avenue to 69th Street; then north along 69th

Street to 37th Avenue; then east along 37th Avenue to 70th Street; then

north along 70th Street to Northern Boulevard; then west along Northern

Boulevard to Queens Plaza North; then west along Queens Plaza North to

the point where the Queensborough Bridge intersects the bank of the

East River; then south and west along the bank of the East River to the

point of beginning.

That area in the borough of Queens in the city of New York that is

bounded as follows: Beginning at the point where Utopia Parkway

intersects the shoreline of Little Bay; then south along Utopia Parkway

to the Grand Central Parkway; then east along the Grand Central Parkway

to the New York City/Nassau County line; then northwest along the New

York City/Nassau County line to the shoreline of Little Neck Bay; then

west along the shorelines of Little Neck Bay, Willets Point, and Little

Bay to the point of beginning.

Nassau and Suffolk Counties. That area in the villages of

Amityville, West Amityville, North Amityville, Babylon, West Babylon,

Copiague, Lindenhurst, Massapequa, Massapequa Park, and East

Massapequa; in the towns of Oyster Bay and Babylon; in the counties of

Nassau and Suffolk that is bounded as follows: Beginning at the point

where West Main Street intersects the west bank of Carlis Creek; then

west along West Main Street to Route 109; then north along Route 109 to

Arnold Avenue; then northwest along Arnold Avenue to Albin Avenue; then

west along Albin Avenue to East John Street; then west along East John

Street to Wellwood Avenue; then south along Wellwood Avenue to West

Hoffman Avenue; then west along West Hoffman Avenue to Marconi

Boulevard; then west along Marconi Boulevard to Great Neck Road; then

north and northwest along Great Neck Road to the Southern State

Parkway; then west along the Southern State Parkway to Broadway; then

south along Broadway to Hicksville Road; then south along Hicksville

Road to Division Avenue; then south along Division Avenue to the

shoreline of South Oyster Bay; then east along the shoreline of South

Oyster Bay to Carlis Creek; then north along the west bank of Carlis

Creek to the point of beginning.

Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of May 1999.

Craig A. Reed,

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 99-13516 Filed 5-26-99; 8:45 am]

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