Department of Agriculture February 27, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations (5 CFR part 1320) which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the intention of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to request an extension for a currently approved information collection (OMB No. 0524-0026) for Form NIFA-666, ``Organizational Information.''

We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has received a petition from the Monsanto Company (Monsanto) seeking a determination of nonregulated status of cotton designated as MON 88701, which has been genetically engineered for tolerance to the herbicides dicamba and glufosinate. The petition has been submitted in accordance with our regulations concerning the introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms and products. We are making the Monsanto petition available for review and comment to help us identify potential environmental and interrelated economic issues and impacts that APHIS may determine should be considered in our evaluation of the petition.

We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has prepared a preliminary decision regarding a request from Stine Seed Farm, Inc., to extend to maize line HCEM485, which has been genetically engineered to be tolerant to the herbicide glyphosate, our determination of nonregulated status of Roundup Ready[supreg] corn line GA21. We are seeking comment on whether this genetically engineered corn is likely to pose a plant pest risk. We are making available for public comment our plant pest risk assessment and draft environmental assessment for the proposed determination of nonregulated status.

We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has received a petition from Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., (Pioneer) seeking a determination of nonregulated status of maize designated as maize event DP-[Oslash][Oslash]4114-3, which has been genetically engineered to be resistant to certain lepidopteran and coleopteran pests and tolerant to the herbicide glufosinate. The petition has been submitted in accordance with our regulations concerning the introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms and products. We are soliciting comments on whether this genetically engineered maize is likely to pose a plant pest risk. We are making available for public comment the Pioneer petition, our plant pest risk assessment, and our draft environmental assessment for the proposed determination of nonregulated status.

The Forest Service is preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) to document the potential effects of the Teton to Snake Fuels Management Project. The analysis will evaluate and disclose the effects of treating National Forest land to reduce the potential fire behavior within the wildland-urban interface to better protect threatened values, to improve firefighter safety, and to allow fire to play a more natural role in the ecosystem. Treatments include understory thinning and prescribed fire some of which are located within the Palisades Wilderness Study Area (WSA) and Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRAs). Connected actions necessary to implement the proposed treatments include road maintenance, reconstruction, temporary road and landing construction and obliteration, and construction of fire control lines where needed to contain prescribed fire treatments. No road work or commercial vegetation treatments would occur within the WSA. Road maintenance would occur in a small portion of the Phillips Ridge IRA but no reconstruction would occur. The project is located in Teton and Lincoln Counties, Wyoming, west of the Jackson Hole valley and Snake River corridor, and east of the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. The Teton to Snake Fuels Management Project was previously scoped and anyalyzed through an environmental assessment (EA) process. The EIS alternatives developed to date are the same as those in the EA. Public comments received on the original Proposed Action, Alternative 2, included support of the project as proposed, but also concerns that the proposed treatments constitute human manipulation in the WSA which could adversely affect wildlife, wilderness character, and eligibility for future designation in the National Wilderness Preservation System. Concern about proposed thinning treatments in the IRAs was also expressed. Requested modifications included reducing the amount of prescribed burning and eliminating all thinning treatments in the WSA and IRAs. Additionally concern was expressed that the proposed action could have adverse effects to habitat for boreal owls and goshawks, as well as reduce old growth habitat. The Forest Service responded to these concerns by developing a new alternative (Alternative 3Reduce Potential Impacts to Special Areas and Wildlife Habitat), which reduces activities in the WSA and IRAs and avoids goshawk habitat, whitebark pine, boreal forest, and old growth habitat. Changes include dropping, reconfiguring, and reducing the size of units, and changing treatment prescriptions. In addition to the above resource concerns, units were modified or dropped if they also had potential impacts to visual quality, implementation difficulty, or topography that could slow an advancing wildfire. Also considered was the proximity of hazardous fuels to homes and to other fuel reduction projects that could contribute to reducing fire behavior in the project area. The Jackson Ranger District may be contacted for specific treatment unit revisions made in developing Alternative 3.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's intention to request an extension of approval of an information collection associated with the regulations for the importation of certain fruits and vegetables into the United States.

We are advising the public of our decision to begin issuing permits for the importation into the continental United States of fresh strawberry fruit from Egypt. Based on the findings of a pest risk analysis, which we made available to the public for review and comment through a previous notice, we believe that the application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating plant pests or noxious weeds via the importation of fresh strawberry fruit from Egypt.

The Forest Service has issued proposed directives to Forest Service Handbook (FSH 1909.12) and Manual (FSM 1920) establishing procedures and responsibilities for implementing the National Forest System (NFS) land management planning regulation. Issuance of these proposed directives will provide consistent overall guidance to Forest Service Line Officers and Agency employees in developing, amending, or revising land management plans for units of the NFS. Public comment is invited and will be considered in developing the final directives.