Department of Agriculture January 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are proposing to amend the Virus-Serum-Toxin Act regulations for certain live bacterial and viral vaccines by removing the requirement to retest the Master Seeds for immunogenicity 3 years after the initial qualifying immunogenicity test. In addition, we are proposing to amend the requirement concerning mouse safety tests prescribed for a biological product recommended for animals other than poultry. These proposed changes would update the standard requirements by eliminating unnecessary testing of Master Seed bacteria and viruses and other forms of bulk or completed biological product.

We are advising producers and users of veterinary biological products, and other interested individuals, that the 14th public meeting on veterinary biologics previously scheduled to be held on March 28 and 29, 2007, is canceled.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and organizations on the extension of a currently approved information collection entitled, Disposal of Mineral Materials.

This notice informs the public of the annual adjustments to the reimbursement rates for meals served in the Summer Food Service Program for Children (SFSP). These adjustments reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index and are required by the statute governing the Program. In addition, further adjustments are made to these rates to reflect the higher costs of providing meals in the States of Alaska and Hawaii, as authorized by the William F. Goodling Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act of 1998.

This notice clarifies that flavor products, e.g., flavor bases, and blended and reaction/process flavors, with greater than 3 percent raw meat or poultry, or 2 percent or more cooked meat or poultry, in their formulation are amenable to Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) jurisdiction. Recent findings show that some manufacturers of flavor products formulated with significant levels of meat, meat byproducts, poultry, and poultry byproducts (e.g., 30-70 percent) are not aware that such products are under FSIS jurisdiction. These manufacturers need to take necessary steps to come under inspection.

The Emmett Ranger District of the Boise National Forest will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a resource management project in the Scriver Creek drainage. The entire project area is located in watersheds that drain into the Middle Fork Payette River. The 11,500-acre project area is located approximately 6 miles north of Crouch, Idaho. The agency invites written comments and suggestions on the scope of the analysis. The agency also hereby gives notice of the environmental analysis and decisionmaking process that will occur on the proposal so interested and affected people are aware of how they may participate and contribute to final decision. At this time, no public meetings to discuss the project are planned. Proposed Action: Three purposes have been identified for the project: (1) Modify stand density, structure, species composition, and surface fuels to restore suitable white-headed woodpecker and flammulated owl habitat, in addition to providing forest conditions that are more resistant to insects, disease and wildfire; (2) initiate watershed restoration within the Scriver Creek 6th Field hydrologic unit (subwatershed) to improve watershed conditions and reduce long- term sedimentation caused by existing roads, in addition to reducing road-related impacts to wildlife, fish, soil, and water resources; (3) provide commercial timber that supports local and/or regional sawmills, employment, and economies. The Proposed Action would implement silvicultural activities, including thinning of commercial trees on 2,826 acres (570 acres of commercial thinning, 1,445 acres of commercial thinning followed by prescribed fire, and 811 acres of commercial thinning followed by machine pile and burning). An estimated 928 acres would be harvested with off-road jammer/tractor, 870 acres would be skyline logged and a helicopter would harvest about 1,028 acres. The Proposed Action would employ silvicultural prescriptions including commercial thin, and thinning of submerchantable trees occurring naturally and within about 846 acres of existing plantations. Approximately 16.5 miles of road would be decommissioned, of which an estimated 0.7 mile or road would be decommissioned while leaving the existing drainage and road prism sufficient for a future motorized trail. Approximately 16.1 miles of road improvement on National Forest System (NFS) roads 693, 6930, 695B, and 696 would take place. Roughly 2.4 miles of new specified road and approximately 1.1 miles of temporary road would be constructed to facilitate harvest activities. Approximately 3.8 miles of NFS roads 696 and 693B would be realigned to eliminate roads and road segments paralleling within Riparian Conservation Area (RCA) corridors, and 1.3 miles of NFS road 693A would be reconstructed. Fish passage would be restored by replacing or removing the existing culvert on NFS road 693A and two culverts on NFS roads 693 and 695 would be replaced with fish passable structures. All perennial crossings would have up to 300 feet of surface gravel applied on both sides of the crossing on those roads used in conjunction with timber harvest (except for roads to be decommissioned). Twelve helicopter landings would be developed. Except for administrative use, about 20.5 miles of authorized roads would be closed year-round to motorized use after vegetation treatments are complete. Preliminary Issues: Preliminary concerns with the Proposed Action include potential impacts on water quality and terrestrial wildlife species. Possible Alternatives to the Proposed Action: One alternative to the Proposed Action that has been discussed thus far is a No Action alternative. Other alternatives will likely be developed as issues are identified and information received. Decisions to be Made: The Boise National Forest Supervisor will decide the following: (1) Should vegetation be managed within the project area at this time, and if so, which stands should be treated and what silvicultural systems applied? (2) Should roads be built at this time, and if so, how many miles should be built and where should they occur within the project area? (3) Should identified road maintenance activities occur at this time? (4) Should road decommissioning and realignment take place and which roads and how would this happen? (5) What design features, mitigation measures, and/ or monitoring should be applied to the project?

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) published a final rule and termination order (final rule) in the Federal Register on November 28, 1995 (60 FR 58499) regarding technical amendments to the Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Order (Order). AMS has found that section 1220.228(a)(1)(v)(A) pertaining to producer refunds, was mistakenly removed from the Order as part of the final rule. This document corrects the Order by adding the language that previously appeared in section 1220.228(a)(1)(v)(A).

The Land Between The Lakes Advisory Board will hold a meeting on Thursday, February 8, 2007. Notice of this meeting is given under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. app.2. The meeting agenda includes the following:

This rule establishes final free and restricted percentages for domestic inshell hazelnuts for the 2006-2007 marketing year under the Federal marketing order for hazelnuts grown in Oregon and Washington. The final free and restricted percentages are 8.2840 percent and 91.7160 percent, respectively. The percentages allocate the quantity of domestically produced hazelnuts which may be marketed in the domestic inshell market (free) and the quantity of domestically produced hazelnuts that must be disposed of in outlets approved by the Board (restricted). Volume regulation is intended to stabilize the supply of domestic inshell hazelnuts to meet the limited domestic demand for such hazelnuts with the goal of providing producers with reasonable returns. This rule was recommended unanimously by the Hazelnut Marketing Board (Board), which is the agency responsible for local administration of the marketing order.

Notice is hereby given that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, intends to grant to General Chemical Performance Products, LLC of Parsippany, New Jersey, an exclusive license to U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 11/003,540, ``Method and Device for Scrubbing Ammonia From Air Exhausted From Animal Rearing Facilities'', filed on December 3, 2004.

A clarification to the Timber Markets Update and Analysis of an Integrated Southeast Alaska Forest Products Industry prepared for the Tongass Land and Resource Management Plan Amendment Draft Environmental Impact Statement is available for review and comment on the following Web site: https://tongass-fpadjust.net/Documents/ McDowellGroupLetter-2006.pdf.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a final rule, without change, an interim final rule that established final volume regulation percentages for 2005-06 crop Natural (sun-dried) Seedless (NS) raisins covered under the Federal marketing order for California raisins (order). The order regulates the handling of raisins produced from grapes grown in California and is locally administered by the Raisin Administrative Committee (Committee). The volume regulation percentages are 82.50 percent free and 17.50 percent reserve. The percentages are intended to help stabilize raisin supplies and prices, and strengthen market conditions.

This action announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) review of the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Program, which is conducted under the Beef Promotion and Research Order (Order), under the criteria contained in section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA).

This rule provides a partial exemption to the minimum grade requirements under the tomato import regulation. The import regulation is authorized under section 8e of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 (Act). Section 8e requires imported tomatoes to meet the same or comparable grade and size requirements as those in effect under Federal Marketing Order No. 966 (order). The order regulates the handling of tomatoes grown in Florida. A separate rule to amend the rules and regulations under the order to exempt UglyRipeTM (UglyRipe) tomatoes from the shape requirements associated with the U.S. No. 2 grade is being issued by Department of Agriculture (USDA). This rule provides the same partial exemption under the import regulation so it will conform to the regulations for Florida tomatoes under the order.

The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for timber harvesting, prescribed burning, road access changes, and watershed rehabilitation in a 12,000-acre drainage area near Missoula, Montana.

We are adopting as a final rule, without change, an interim rule that amended the pine shoot beetle regulations by adding counties in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, New Jersey, New York, and Ohio to the list of quarantined areas and by designating the States of Michigan, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania, in their entirety, as quarantined areas based on their decision not to enforce intrastate movement restrictions. The interim rule also added the States of Connecticut and Rhode Island, in their entirety, to the list of quarantined areas based on projections of the natural spread of pine shoot beetle that make it reasonable to believe that the pest is present in those States. The interim rule was necessary to prevent the spread of pine shoot beetle, a pest of pine trees, into noninfested areas of the United States.

This rule provides a partial exemption to the minimum grade requirements under the marketing order for tomatoes grown in Florida (order). The Florida Tomato Committee (Committee) locally administers the order. Under the order, Florida tomatoes must meet at least a U.S. No. 2 grade before they can be shipped and sold outside the regulated area. This rule exempts UglyRipeTM (UglyRipe) tomatoes from the shape requirements associated with the U.S. No. 2 grade. This change increases the volume of UglyRipe tomatoes that will meet the order requirements, and will help increase shipments and availability of these tomatoes for consumers.

This rule increases the assessment rate established for the Florida Tomato Committee (Committee) for the 2006-07 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.025 to $0.035 per 25-pound container or equivalent of tomatoes handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of tomatoes grown in Florida. Assessments upon Florida tomato handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins August 1 and ends July 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service announce an extension to the call for nominations for appointment or reappointment for the following five positions on the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Advisory Committee: representative and alternate for the City of Palm Springs; representative and alternate for a local developer or builder organization; representative and alternate for the City of La Quinta; representative and alternate for a local conservation organization; and representative and alternate for the California Department of Fish and Game or the California Department of Parks and Recreation.

This document summarizes the results of an Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) review of the Mushroom Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Program under the criteria contained in section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. Based on this review, AMS has determined that the Mushroom Promotion, Research, and Consumer Information Order should be continued without change.

This rule invites comments on modifications to the administrative rules governing committee representation under the Washington potato marketing order. The marketing order regulates the handling of Irish potatoes grown in Washington, and is administered locally by the State of Washington Potato Committee (Committee). This rule would reestablish districts within the production area, reestablish the Committee with fewer members, and reapportion members among districts. These changes would result in more efficient administration of the program while providing for more effective representation of the Washington fresh potato industry on the Committee.