Notice2023-02812
Notice of Availability of a Supplemental Environmental Assessment for Release of Aphalara itadori From Murakami, Japan for the Biological Control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian Knotweeds in the Contiguous United States
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
February 10, 2023
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Abstract
We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has prepared a supplemental environmental assessment (EA) relative to a 2020 EA for the release of Aphalara itadori for the biological control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian knotweeds (Fallopia japonica, F. sachalinensis, and F. x bohemica), significant invasive weeds, within the contiguous United States. This supplement analyzes the potential impacts of the release of A. itadori from Murakami, Japan, that may be more effective than the present Hokkaido and Kyushu lines of A. itadori in reducing infestations of knotweeds, particularly hybrid knotweed, which is the most abundant type of knotweed in the United States. We are making the supplemental EA available to the public for review and comment.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 28 (Friday, February 10, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 28 (Friday, February 10, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8794-8795]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-02812]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2019-0002]
Notice of Availability of a Supplemental Environmental Assessment
for Release of Aphalara itadori From Murakami, Japan for the Biological
Control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian Knotweeds in the Contiguous
United States
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are advising the public that the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has prepared a supplemental environmental assessment
(EA) relative to a 2020 EA for the release of Aphalara itadori for the
biological control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian knotweeds (Fallopia
japonica, F. sachalinensis, and F. x bohemica), significant invasive
weeds, within the contiguous United States. This supplement analyzes
the potential impacts of the release of A. itadori from Murakami,
Japan, that may be more effective than the present Hokkaido and Kyushu
lines of A. itadori in reducing infestations of knotweeds, particularly
hybrid knotweed, which is the most abundant type of knotweed in the
United States. We are making the supplemental EA available to the
public for review and comment.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before March
13, 2023.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
<bullet> FederaleRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>.
Enter APHIS-2019-0002 in the Search field. Select the Documents tab,
then select the Comment button in the list of documents.
<bullet> Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2019-0002, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD,
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
The supplemental environmental assessment and any comments we
receive on this docket may be viewed at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> or in our
reading room, which is located in room 1620 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)
799-7039 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Robert S. Pfannenstiel, Acting
Assistant Director, Pests, Pathogens and Biocontrol Permitting, Plant
Health Programs, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD
20737-1231; (301) 851-2198; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#fb999499d58b9d9a95959e95888f929e97bb8e889f9ad59c948d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="64060b064a1402050a0a010a17100d010824111700054a030b12">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Invasive knotweeds in North America are a
complex of three closely related species in the family Polygonaceae
that were introduced from Japan during the late 19th century. They
include Fallopia japonica (Japanese knotweed), F. sachalinensis (Giant
knotweed), and the hybrid between the two, F. x bohemica (Bohemian
knotweed). These large herbaceous perennials have spread throughout
much of North America, with the greatest infestations in the Pacific
Northwest, the northeast of the United States, and eastern Canada.
While capable of growing in diverse habitats, the knotweeds have become
especially problematic along the banks and floodplains of rivers and
streams, where they crowd out native plants and potentially affect
stream nutrients and food webs. While several States have active
control programs against knotweeds, the inaccessibility of some of the
infestations and the difficulty with which the plants are killed
suggest that complete eradication of knotweeds within the United States
is unlikely.
Previously, the Hokkaido and Kyushu biotypes of the insect,
Aphalara itadori, were chosen as potential biological control
organisms. The biotypes were expected to reduce the severity of
infestations of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian knotweed, and they are
known to be highly host specific due to their intimate relationship
with their host plants.
On May 28, 2019, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) published in the Federal Register (84 FR 24463-24464, Docket
No. APHIS-2019-0002) \1\ a notice in which we announced the
availability, for public review and comment, of an environmental
assessment (EA) that examined the potential environmental impacts
associated with the release of A. itadori from Kyushu and Hokkaido,
Japan, for the biological control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian
knotweed within the contiguous United States. After soliciting and
reviewing comments on the EA, we prepared a finding of no significant
impact (FONSI). On November 30, 2020, we published in the Federal
Register (85 FR 76515-76516, Docket No. APHIS-2019-0002) a notice in
which we announced the availability of the final EA and FONSI.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ To view the notice, supporting documents, and the comments
we received, go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Enter APHIS-2019-
0002 in the Search field.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In June 2021, APHIS received a request to issue permits for the
environmental release of A. itadori sourced from Murakami, Japan, into
the contiguous United States. Environmental release of the Murakami
line of A. itadori may be more effective than the Hokkaido and Kyushu
lines. It is native to a climate and photoperiod better matched to the
primary target knotweed regions of the United States. It is recently
collected and thus field-adapted (not lab-adapted as are currently
permitted lines). It also performs particularly well on hybrid knotweed
(F. x bohemica), the most abundant knotweed type in the United States.
Before permits are issued for the release of A. itadori from
Murakami, Japan, APHIS needs to analyze the potential impacts of the
release of A. itadori from Murakami, Japan. Accordingly, APHIS has
prepared a supplemental EA titled ``Field Release of the Knotweed
Psyllid Aphalara itadori (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) from Murakami, Japan
for Classical Biological Control of Japanese, Giant, and Bohemian
Knotweeds, Fallopia japonica, F. sachalinensis, and F. x bohemica
(Polygonaceae), in the Contiguous United States, Supplemental
Environmental Assessment'' (November 2022).
We are making the supplemental EA available to the public for
review and comment. We will consider all comments that we receive on or
before the date listed under the heading DATES at the beginning of this
notice.
The supplemental EA may be viewed on the <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> website or
in our reading room (see ADDRESSES above for instructions accessing
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> and information on the location and hours of the
reading room). In addition, paper copies may be obtained by calling or
writing to the individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
The supplemental EA has been prepared in accordance with: (1) The
National Environmental Policy Act of
[[Page 8795]]
1969 (NEPA), as amended (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) Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service's NEPA Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 372).
Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of February 2023.
Anthony Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-02812 Filed 2-9-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on February 10, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.