Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service July 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are amending the regulations governing the interstate movement of fruit from an area quarantined for citrus canker to extend the temporary exception that allows fruit to be packed for interstate movement in bags that are clearly marked with only a limited distribution statement, if those bags are then packed in a box that is marked with both the limited distribution statement and the statement ``Limited Permit: USDA-APHIS-PPQ.'' We are extending the ending date for this temporary exemption from August 1, 2008, to August 1, 2010. This action provides for the continued use of existing inventories of bags in which regulated fruit are packed while maintaining safeguards against the movement of regulated fruit to commercial citrus-producing States.

We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has prepared a site-specific environmental assessment and pest risk assessment relative to a request to allow the interstate movement of garbage from Hawaii to a landfill in the State of Oregon. The environmental assessment has been prepared to determine whether the request is consistent with the environmental effects and impacts analyzed in our March 2008 regional programmatic environmental assessment as well as to evaluate potential site-specific environmental impacts of the proposed action. The pest risk assessment evaluates the risks associated with the interstate movement of garbage from Hawaii to Oregon. We are making these documents available to the public for review and comment.

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 health certificates for the export of live crustaceans, finfish, mollusks, and related products.

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 regulations for the importation of clementines from Spain.

In accordance with legislation implementing the results of the Uruguay Round of negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, we are informing the public of the international standard- setting activities of the World Organization for Animal Health, the Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention, and the North American Plant Protection Organization, and we are soliciting public comment on the standards to be considered.

We are proposing to amend the regulations regarding the payment of indemnity for animals destroyed because of bovine tuberculosis to provide that an approved herd plan must be in place prior to the payment of indemnity, and to provide that 10 percent of the gross indemnity payment be withheld by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service until the conditions of an approved herd plan have been implemented. We are also proposing to amend the regulations to deny payments of Federal indemnity for a herd whose owner has failed to follow the provisions of an approved herd plan, or has violated the conditions of an approved herd plan. We believe these proposed changes would further tuberculosis eradication efforts in the United States and protect livestock not affected with tuberculosis from the disease.

We are advising the public of our determination regarding the high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) subtype H5N1 status of Denmark and France. Based on assessments of the animal health status of the two countries, which we made available to the public for review and comment through a previous notice, the Administrator has determined that the importation of live birds, poultry carcasses, parts or products of poultry carcasses, and eggs (other than hatching eggs) of poultry, game birds, and other birds from either Denmark or France presents a low risk of introducing HPAI H5N1 into the United States.

We are proposing to amend the regulations regarding the interstate movement of livestock to require approved livestock facilities and listed slaughtering and rendering establishments to maintain certain records for 5 years. Currently, approved livestock facilities are required to retain certain records for 2 years, and there are no record retention provisions that apply to listed slaughtering and rendering establishments. Requiring the retention of certain records for 5 years would allow us to trace the prior movements of diseased livestock further into the past than is currently possible, thus providing the opportunity to locate potentially infected or exposed livestock that might otherwise remain unidentified. We are also proposing to require the operators of slaughtering and rendering establishments to sign listing agreements to document their agreement to comply with the requirements of the regulations for listed slaughtering and rendering establishments. Such agreements are currently required for approved livestock facilities, but not for slaughtering and rendering facilities. The proposed change would eliminate that inconsistency.

We are proposing to amend the regulations to allow for the importation of cooked pork skins from regions affected with foot-and- mouth disease, swine vesicular disease, African swine fever, and classical swine fever under certain conditions. We are taking this action after preparing a risk assessment that concluded that the cooking methods examined are sufficient to inactivate the pathogens of concern. This action would relieve restrictions on the importation of cooked pork skins while continuing to protect against the introduction of those diseases of concern.