<div dir="ltr"><blockquote><font color="#000000" face="arial, helvetica"><b><span style="font-size:13.3333px">USDA Announces Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement to Deregulate GE Creeping Bentgrass </span><br><span style="font-size:13.3333px">Comment by Mon 11/14/2016</span></b></font><br><br></blockquote><blockquote style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica;font-size:13.3333px"><table width="700" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><div><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">,</font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">,</font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> is making available a draft environmental impact statement (dEIS)</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">,</font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> and</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">a</font><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">preliminary plant pest risk assessment (</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">p</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">P</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">PRA</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">)</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">,</font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> as part of its review of a petition to deregulate </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">a</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px"> </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">creeping bentgrass </span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">(<i>Agrostis stolonifera</i>) that has been </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">genetically engineered (GE) for resistance to the herbicide glyphosate</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">[e.g., Roundup</font></span><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="font-size:18.6667px">®</span></font><span style="font-family:"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:14pt">]</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:14pt">.</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> The </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">petition</span><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif" style="font-size:10pt"><span style="font-size:14pt"> </span><span style="font-size:14pt">for deregulation </span></font><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">was</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif"> </font></span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">jointly</font><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">submi<wbr>tted by</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">The</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">Scotts</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">Company</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">and </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">the </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"><wbr>Monsanto Company.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"><br></span></div><div style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">The dEIS and</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">p</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">P</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">PRA </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">will be available for a 45-day public comment period upon publication </span></div><div style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"></span></div><div style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">in the <em>Federal Register</em>. APHIS will finalize the dEIS and </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">p</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt">PPRA after carefully considering public comments</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">,</font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"> before making a final regulatory determination and issuing a Record of Decision.</span></div><div style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:14pt"><br></span></div><div><span style="font-family:"times new roman";font-size:14pt">The dEIS and associated documents are available on the </span><span style="font-family:"times new roman";font-size:14pt"><a href="http://links.govdelivery.com/track?type=click&enid=ZWFzPTEmbWFpbGluZ2lkPTIwMTYwOTI5LjY0NDAxMzUxJm1lc3NhZ2VpZD1NREItUFJELUJVTC0yMDE2MDkyOS42NDQwMTM1MSZkYXRhYmFzZWlkPTEwMDEmc2VyaWFsPTE3NzcxMTYxJmVtYWlsaWQ9amFtZXNsd2hpdGU0OEBnbWFpbC5jb20mdXNlcmlkPWphbWVzbHdoaXRlNDhAZ21haWwuY29tJmZsPSZleHRyYT1NdWx0aXZhcmlhdGVJZD0mJiY=&&&102&&&https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/biotechnology/brs-news-and-information/ct_news" target="_blank"><font color="#0000ff">News and Information</font></a></span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman"> page of the </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">USDA/</span><span style="font-family:"times new roman",serif;font-size:18.6667px">APHIS/</span><span style="font-size:14pt"><font face="Times New Roman">BRS website.</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif"> [See the dEIS & pPPRA attached.] </font><font face="Times New Roman">Comments can be submitted from September 30, 2016 to <span class="m_-7068362579125985738gmail-aBn"><span class="m_-7068362579125985738gmail-aQJ">November 14, 2016</span></span>, at </font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman";font-size:14pt"><a href="http://links.govdelivery.com/track?type=click&enid=ZWFzPTEmbWFpbGluZ2lkPTIwMTYwOTI5LjY0NDAxMzUxJm1lc3NhZ2VpZD1NREItUFJELUJVTC0yMDE2MDkyOS42NDQwMTM1MSZkYXRhYmFzZWlkPTEwMDEmc2VyaWFsPTE3NzcxMTYxJmVtYWlsaWQ9amFtZXNsd2hpdGU0OEBnbWFpbC5jb20mdXNlcmlkPWphbWVzbHdoaXRlNDhAZ21haWwuY29tJmZsPSZleHRyYT1NdWx0aXZhcmlhdGVJZD0mJiY=&&&103&&&https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2015-0096" target="_blank"><font color="#0000ff"></font></a><font color="#0000ff"><a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2015-0096" target="_blank">https://www.regulations.<wbr>gov/docket?D=APHIS-2015-0096</a></font></span><span style="font-family:"times new roman";font-size:14pt">.</span></div><div> </div><div id="m_-7068362579125985738gmail-m_473502544561182093mail_footer"></div></td></tr></tbody></table><br></blockquote><div><br></div>-- <br><div class="m_-7068362579125985738gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr">Lindsey Riibe<div>Bureau of Land Management Plant Conservation Program</div><div><a href="http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/more/fish__wildlife_and/plants/pca.htm" target="_blank">Plant Conservation Alliance</a></div><div><br></div></div></div></div></div>
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