[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 159 (Thursday, August 15, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42404-42407]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-20589]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------


ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-5552-6]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan; 
National Priorities List

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Delete Alcoa (Vancouver Smelter) NPL Site 
from the National Priorities List Update: Request for Comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 announces 
its intent to delete the Alcoa (Vancouver Smelter) NPL Site from the 
National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this 
proposed action. The NPL constitutes Appendix B of 40 CFR part 300 
which is the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution 
Contingency Plan (NCP), which EPA promulgated pursuant to Section 105 
of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended. EPA and the State of 
Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) have determined that the 
Site poses no significant threat to public health or the environment 
and, therefore, further remedial measures pursuant to CERCLA are not 
appropriate.

DATES: Comments concerning this Site may be submitted on or before 
September 16, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Lynda Priddy, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Mail Stop ECL-113, Seattle, 
Washington 98101.
    Comprehensive information on this Site is available through Ecology 
which is available for viewing at the Alcoa Site information 
repositories at the following locations:

Fort Vancouver Regional Library, Main Branch, 1007 East Mill Plain 
Blvd., Vancouver, WA 98633
Washington Department of Ecology, Industrial Section, 2404 Chandler 
Court SW, Suite 200, Olympia, WA 98502.

    The deletion docket for the deletion of the Alcoa Site is available 
through EPA at the following locations:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10, 1200 6th Street, 
Records Center, Seattle, WA 98115
Fort Vancouver Regional Library, Main Branch, 1007 East Mill Plain 
Blvd., Vancouver, WA 98633.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynda Priddy, U.S. EPA Region 10, 1200 
Sixth Avenue, Mail Stop: ECL-113, Seattle, Washington 98101, (206) 553-
1987.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis of Intended Site Deletion

I. Introduction

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 announces its 
intent to

[[Page 42405]]

delete a site from the National Priorities List (NPL) Appendix B of the 
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR 
Part 300, and requests comments on this deletion. EPA identifies sites 
on the NPL that appear to present a significant risk to human health or 
the environment. As described in Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites 
deleted from the NPL remain eligible for federal Fund-financed remedial 
actions or state action under the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) in 
the unlikely event that conditions at the site warrant such actions.
    EPA plans to delete the Alcoa (Vancouver Smelter) Site (``Site'') 
at 5701 NW Lower River Road, Vancouver, Washington, from the NPL.
    EPA will accept comments on the plan to delete this Site for thirty 
days after publication of this document in the Federal Register.
    Section II of this document explains the criteria for deleting 
sites from the NPL. Section III discusses procedures that EPA is using 
for this action. Section IV discusses the Alcoa (Vancouver Smelter) NPL 
Site and explains how the Site meets the deletion criteria.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    Section 300.425(e) of the NCP provides that ``releases'' (sites) 
may be deleted from, or recategorized on the NPL where no further 
response is appropriate. In making a determination to delete a site 
from the NPL, EPA shall consider, in consultation with the state, 
whether any of the following criteria have been met:
    (i) Responsible parties or other parties have implemented all 
appropriate response actions required;
    (ii) All appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been 
implemented, and no further action by responsible parties is 
appropriate, or
    (iii) The remedial investigation has shown that the release poses 
no significant threat to public health or the environment and, 
therefore, taking of remedial measures is not appropriate.
    Even if a site is deleted from the NPL, where hazardous substances, 
pollutants or contaminants remain at the site above levels that allow 
for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure, EPA's policy is that a 
subsequent review of the site will be conducted at least every five 
years after the initiation of the remedial action at the site to ensure 
that the site remains protective of human health and the environment. 
In the case of the Alcoa Site, hazardous substances remain at the Site 
above health-based levels, therefore, access to the Site has been 
restricted, deed restrictions and institutional controls have been 
imposed, groundwater monitoring and periodic five-year reviews will be 
required. In addition, in the event that there is a significant release 
from a site deleted from the NPL, the site may be restored to the NPL 
without application of the Hazard Ranking System.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures have been used for the intended deletion 
of this Site: (1) Ecology has issued a Preliminary Close Out Report 
(PCOR) which documented the completion of remedial activities; (2) 
Ecology has issued a letter certifying that no further remedial action 
is expected and that the remedy is protective of human health and the 
environment; (3) EPA has concurred with Ecology's finding that the 
remedy is protective of human health and the environment; (4) Ecology 
has concurred with the proposed deletion decision; (5) A notice has 
been published in the local newspaper and distributed to appropriate 
federal, state, and local officials and other interested parties 
announcing the commencement of a 30-day public comment period on EPA's 
Notice of Intent to Delete; and, (6) All relevant documents have been 
made available for public review in the local Site information 
repositories.
    Deletion of the Site from the NPL does not in itself, create, alter 
or revoke any individual rights or obligations. The NPL is designed 
primarily for informational purposes to assist Agency management. As 
mentioned in section II of this document, 40 CFR 300.425 (e)(3) states 
that deletion of a site from the NPL does not preclude eligibility for 
future federal Fund-financed response actions or future actions under 
the state's MTCA.
    EPA's Regional Office will accept and evaluate public comments on 
the EPA's Notice of Intent to Delete before making a final decision. 
The Agency will prepare a Responsiveness Summary if any significant 
public comments are received.
    A deletion occurs when the Regional Administrator places a final 
action in the Federal Register. Generally, the NPL will reflect 
deletions in the final update following the Notice. Public notices and 
copies of the Responsiveness Summary will be placed in the local 
repositories and made available to local residents by the Regional 
Office.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

    The following site summary provides the Agency's rationale for the 
intention to delete the Site from the NPL.

A. Site Background

    The Alcoa Site in located in Vancouver, Clark County, Washington, 
approximately three miles northwest of downtown Vancouver, Washington 
and approximately 300 to 500 feet north of the Columbia River. The site 
is found at the southeastern corner of the VANALCO smelter complex 
located at 5701 NW Lower River Road, Vancouver. The site has been used 
for industrial purposes since World War II and is currently zoned for 
heavy industry. The area is changing from a mixture of agriculture and 
heavy industry to commercial and heavy industry. The site consists of 
three waste piles, contaminated soil under waste piles and subsurface 
contaminated strata and groundwater.
    The Alcoa facility has produced aluminum since 1940 using the Hall-
Heroult electrolytic cell process. The process is an electrochemical 
reduction reaction in which aluminum oxide is dissolved in a bath of 
molten salts (cryolite) at a temperature of 1760 degrees. An electric 
current is passed through the cell causing the reduction of alumina to 
aluminum. The entire process occurs in a steel shell or pot that is 
lined with insulation material and carbon, known as potlining.
    In order to retain the purity of the molten aluminum and the 
structural integrity of the cell, the molten aluminum and cryolite 
mixture must be kept isolated from the steel shell of the pot. Over 
time, the carbon lining materials become impregnated with the molten 
cryolite solution, eventually threatening the integrity of the steel 
and carbon shell. The pot is drained and the carbon and insulation 
materials replaced. The carbon that is removed from failed pots, is 
known as spent potlining. Spent potlining consists of carbon, fluoride, 
aluminuma and sodium, with minor amounts of calcium, silica, iron and 
cyanide and is a listed (K088) dangerous waste.

B. History

    * Early 1950's-1973: Spent pot lining was shipped off-site to the 
Reynolds Aluminum Plant in Livingston, Washington and recycled.
    * 1973-1981: Pot liner waste piles were formed on site. They were 
not covered and were exposed to normal precipitation. Fluoride and 
cyanide leached out of the exposed pot liner and contaminated soils and 
ground water below the piles.
    * 1977: Alcoa installed nine shallow monitoring wells in the 
vicinity of the three waste piles. Sampling of these wells discovered 
groundwater contamination.

[[Page 42406]]

    * 1978, 1981: The piles were covered with plastic and clean sand.
    * 1986: As a result of increasing cyanide in the monitoring wells, 
Ecology ordered Alcoa to conduct a program to assess the groundwater 
contamination at the site and to evaluate potential cleanup actions.
    * 1987: Alcoa submitted to Ecology a Remedial Investigation and 
Feasibility Report. The investigation revealed that the groundwater 
contamination extended to the Columbia River. The report identified 
four water bearing zones at the site, three of which were contaminated 
with concentrations of cyanide and fluoride above drinking water 
standards.
    * 1989: EPA identified Ecology as the Lead Agency for cleanup 
activities at the site. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease 
Registry conducted a site visit, reviewed available data and made 
several recommendations regarding remediation.
    * 1990: The site was placed on the NPL by EPA.
    * 1992: Ecology issued a final Cleanup Action Plan (CAP) under MTCA 
and filed a Consent Decree with Alcoa in State Court. Remedial action 
was started and completed. Alcoa's final remedial action report was 
submitted to Ecology.
    * 1994: Remedial requirements of the Consent Decree (described in 
the next section) have been met by Alcoa. Ecology certifies that the 
construction phase has been completed.
    * 1996: Ecology issues a Preliminary Close Out Report (PCOR) and 
certifies that all remedial action specified in the CAP has been 
completed, no further action is expected and that the remedy is 
protective of human health and the environment.

C. Remedial Action Selected and Implemented

    On February 7, 1992, Ecology, as the Lead Agency and pursuant to 
MTCA, issued the CAP (equivalent to the CERCLA Record of Decision) for 
the Alcoa Site. The CAP lists the cleanup goals for the site, presents 
the different cleanup alternatives that were examined, and presents 
Ecology's selected site cleanup method. The elements of the selected 
remedial action and a description of the remedial activities performed, 
are:
    * Removal of approximately 66,000 tons (47,500 cubic yards) of 
spent potlining and reclaimed alumina insulation and disposal at a 
RCRA-permitted hazardous waste landfill.
    Source control was accomplished by the removal of 71,758.91 tons of 
potliner material to Chem-Security Systems, Inc., Arlington, Oregon, a 
permitted hazardous waste landfill. The potliner material was excavated 
by using conventional excavation equipment.
    * Characterization of soils below existing potlining piles.
    The contaminated soils beneath the piles were sampled for cyanide 
and fluoride once the potliner was removed.
    * Capping contaminated soils with 50 mil HDPE or 40 mil PVC liner 
and covering with two feet of sand with top soil. The capped area shall 
be fenced and graded to drain.
    A 50 mil high density polyethylene (HDPE) flexible membrane liner 
was placed on compacted sand. The liner extended beyond the limits of 
the removed pile. A one foot by one foot anchor trench was excavated 
around the perimeter of the cap to hold the liner in place.
    Eighteen to twenty-four inches of clean sand was placed over the 
entire area. The sand was placed so the capped area would drain from 
north to south. Upon completion of the sand cover, six inches of 
topsoil was placed and compacted over the capped area. The topsoil was 
hydroseeded and the capped area was fenced with an eight-foot chain 
link fence. The purpose of this cap is to minimize further infiltration 
of water into the contaminated soil and thereby minimize or prevent 
further leaching of the contamination from the soil into the 
groundwater.
    Alcoa has inspected and performed maintenance on the cap on a 
quarterly during the regularly scheduled groundwater monitoring 
activities. Maintenance requirements for the cap include grading to 
maintain proper site drainage, repair of any erosion or areas of 
distressed vegetation, and maintenance of site perimeter fencing and 
warning signs.
    * Institutional controls to prevent the disruption of the liner and 
withdrawal of groundwater from the contaminated plume.
    Alcoa has recorded a restrictive land use covenant in the property 
deed for the site to ensure that no groundwater is removed for domestic 
purposes from the plume and that there is no interference with the 
cleanup action. Alcoa may use the site for industrial purposes 
consistent with the remedial action and the covenant. If the levels of 
fluoride in the groundwater reach 4.0 mg/l and free cyanide in 
groundwater reaches 0.2 mg/l, levels that are safe for drinking, Alcoa 
or the subsequent owner may request that Ecology remove the requirement 
for a restrictive covenant. However, Ecology may agree with that 
request only after a public comment period and insofar as the request 
is consistent with applicable law, including cleanup standards.
    * Continued groundwater and Columbia River surface water 
monitoring. Groundwater remediation will be required if fluoride and 
cyanide concentrations increase near the Columbia River. The 
concentration of cyanide and fluoride will have to increase to levels 
that are treatable.
    Subsurface flow into the Columbia River is from the deep and 
aquifer zones. Measurements in the Columbia River upstream and 
downstream from the Site show no difference in cyanide and fluoride 
concentrations which indicates that the Alcoa Site is not a significant 
source of these contaminants to the Columbia River. Ecology estimates 
that seepage of contaminated groundwater from the Alcoa Site into the 
Columbia River would add 0.001 ppb fluoride and 0.000008 ppb cyanide 
seepage--minimal levels of fluoride and cyanide--to Columbia River 
water.

D. Characterization of Risk

    Prior to remediation, the preliminary environmental pathways of 
concern related to the potliner waste piles were groundwater 
contamination and on-site soils.
    Removal of spent potliner material and insulation from the site and 
capping the area of contaminated soil has eliminated potential surface 
exposure to contaminated soil and significantly reduced the source of 
groundwater contamination. Four years of groundwater monitoring 
following the remedial action indicate that concentrations of cyanide 
and fluoride have exceeded MCLs in the groundwater under the 
contaminated soil at certain times. Groundwater samples taken where the 
groundwater enters the Columbia River show no detections of cyanide or 
fluoride. Ecology does not believe that the drinking water well one 
mile upgradient of the Site is threatened because the groundwater is 
not expected to move upstream. Monitoring data in the upgradient 
industrial production wells indicate that fluoride and cyanide levels 
are below acceptable drinking water levels or MCLs, however, some 
monitoring wells upgradient, within 600 feet, of the capped area have 
shown exceedances of MCLs for cyanide and fluoride. All pathways by 
which environmental receptors could potentially be exposed to Site-
related contaminants have been eliminated.
    Since hazardous substances remain on Site, operation and 
maintenance activities for the cap will continue, use

[[Page 42407]]

of the Site has been restricted, and institutional controls will remain 
in effect (e.g., restricted access to the Site). A long-term 
groundwater monitoring program has been implemented at the Site. In 
addition, the Site will continue to be subject to periodic five-year 
reviews to ensure that the remedy remains protective of human health 
and the environment.

E. Other Activities at the Facility

    The NPL site was defined as the potliner waste pile area and any 
contamination associated with the potliner waste (e.g., cyanide and 
fluoride-contaminated soil and groundwater). However, some other areas 
of the facility were contaminated and have been addressed, separately 
from the NPL site, pursuant to the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) or 
the State Dangerous Waste Law. These areas include: (1) A landfill area 
containing TCE contamination; (2) a lagoon area containing PCBs; (3) 
PCB and PAH soil contamination in the Rod Mill building; (4) PCB and 
TPH-contamination in a parking lot. cont; (5) TPH and cyanide in a 
barge bludge lagoon; and (6) as a RCRA closure, tank sludge from the 
VANEXCO anodizing plant. More information on these activities can be 
found in the comprehensive Site file. See the next section for the 
location of the site file and deletion docket.

F. Public Participation

    Community input has been sought by Ecology throughout the cleanup 
process for the Site. Community relations activities have included 
public meetings prior to signing the Consent Decree, several public 
notices in local newspapers, and routine publication of progress fact 
sheets. A copy of the Deletion Docket can be reviewed by the public at 
the Fort Vancouver Regional Library or the EPA Region 10 Records 
Center. The Deletion Docket includes this document, the CAP, the 
Project Completion Report, Consent Decree, and the PCOR. Comprehensive 
Site files are available for review at Fort Vancouver Regional Library, 
and the Washington Department of Ecology. EPA Region 10 will also 
announce the availability of the Deletion Docket for public review in a 
local newspaper and informational fact sheet.
    One of the three criteria for deletion specifies that EPA may 
delete a site from the NPL if ``responsible parties or other persons 
have implemented all appropriate response actions required''. EPA, with 
the concurrence of Ecology, has determined that this criteria for 
deletion has been met. EPA and Ecology believe that no significant 
threat to human health or the environment remains because pathways of 
concern for exposure to contaminants no longer exist. Groundwater data 
show that MCLs are not exceeded at the point where groundwater from the 
Site enters the Columbia River and there are no drinking water wells 
within the area of groundwater contamination nor will any be allowed in 
the future. Because of the limited extent of the contaminated plume, 
the completed source removal, the placement of institutional controls, 
the technical infeasibility and lack of effectiveness of a more 
aggressive groundwater remedial action, and the lack of impact on the 
Columbia River, EPA and Ecology believe that natural attenuation over 
time will reduce the level of cyanide and fluoride concentrations in 
the groundwater under the Site. Groundwater monitoring will continue 
until there are no exceedances of MCLs. If new information comes 
available that indicates that there is a significant threat to human 
health or the environment then EPA or Ecology can require or conduct 
additional remedial action, if appropriate. Subsequently, EPA is 
proposing deletion of this Site from the NPL. Documents supporting this 
action are available from the docket.

    Dated: August 6, 1996.
Randall F. Smith,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.
[FR Doc. 96-20589 Filed 8-14-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P