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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

Trade Representative, Office of United States

NOTICE: NOTICES

ACTION: Trade Policy Staff Committee:

DOCUMENT ACTION: Notice of availability and request for public comment.

SUBJECT CATEGORY: Trade Policy Staff Committee; Notice of Availability and Request for Public Comment on Interim Environmental Review of United States- Australia Free Trade Agreement

DATES: Comments on the draft environmental review are requested by January 16, 2004 to inform negotiations. Comments received after January 16, 2004 will be taken into account in the preparation of the review of the final agreement.

DOCUMENT SUMMARY: The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), on behalf of the Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC), seeks comment on the interim environmental review of the proposed U.S.Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The interim environmental review is available at http://www.ustr.gov/environment/environmental.shtml. Copies of the review will also be sent to interested members of the public by mail upon request.

SUMMARY: U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement—; Environmental review,

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION

The Trade Act of 2002, signed by the President on August 6, 2002, provides that the President shall conduct environmental reviews of [certain] trade agreements consistent with Executive Order 13121Environmental Review of Trade Agreements (64 FR 63,169, Nov. 18, 1999) and its implementing guidelines (65 FR 79,442, Dec. 19, 2000) and report on such reviews to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate. The Order and guidelines are available at http://www.ustr.gov/environment/environmental.shtml .

The purpose of environmental reviews is to ensure that policymakers and the public are informed about reasonably foreseeable environmental impacts of trade agreements (both positive and negative), to identify complementarities between trade and environmental objectives, and to help shape appropriate responses if environmental impacts are identified. Reviews are intended to be one tool, among others, for integrating environmental information and analysis into the fluid, dynamic process of trade negotiations. USTR and the Council on Environmental Quality jointly oversee implementation of the Order and Guidelines. USTR, through the Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC), is responsible for conducting the individual reviews.

Written Comments

In order to facilitate prompt processing of submissions of comments, the Office of the United States Trade Representative strongly urges and prefers email submissions in response to this notice. Persons submitting comments by email should use the following email address: FR0407@ustr.gov with the subject line: ``Australia Interim Environmental Review.'' Documents should be submitted as either WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) files. Persons who make submissions by email should not provide separate cover letters; information that might appear in a cover letter should be included in the submission itself. To the extent possible, any attachments to the submission should be included in the same file as the submission itself, and not as separate files. If submission by email is impossible, comments should be made by facsimile to (202) 3956143, attention: Gloria Blue.

Written comments will be placed in a file open to public inspection in the USTR Reading Room at 1724 F Street, NW., Washington DC. An appointment to review the file may be made by calling (202) 3956186. The Reading Room is open to the public from 1012 a.m. and from 14 p.m., Monday through Friday.

General information concerning the Office of the United States Trade Representative may be obtained by accessing its Internet Web site (http://www.ustr.gov). Carmen SuroBredie,
Chair, Trade Policy Staff Committee.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT For procedural questions concerning public comments, contact Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, TPSC, Office of the USTR, 1724 F Street, NW., Washington, DC 20508, telephone (202) 3953475. Questions concerning the environmental review, or requests for copies, should be addressed to David Brooks, Environment and Natural Resources Section, Office of the USTR, telephone (202) 395 7320.