[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 27 (Monday, February 10, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 5950-5953]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-2994]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300
[FRL-5684-8]
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan;
National Priorities List
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
[[Page 5951]]
ACTION: Notice of intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the
National Priorities List: Request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region II announces
its intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the National
Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this action. The
NPL is 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), as amended. EPA and
the State of New York have determined that no further cleanup by
responsible parties is appropriate under CERCLA. Moreover, EPA and the
State have determined that CERCLA activities conducted at the Conklin
Dumps to date have been protective of public health, welfare, and the
environment.
DATES: Comments concerning the deletion of the Conklin Dumps site from
the NPL may be submitted on or before March 12, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Comments concerning the deletion of the Conklin Dumps site
from the NPL may be submitted to: Arnold R. Bernas, P.E., Remedial
Project Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region II, 290
Broadway, 20th floor, New York, NY 10007-1866.
Comprehensive information on the Conklin Dumps site is contained in
the EPA Region II public docket, which is located at EPA's Region II
office (the 18th floor), and is available for viewing, by appointment
only, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding
holidays. For further information, or to request an appointment to
review the public docket, please contact Mr. Bernas at (212) 637-3964.
Background information from the Regional public docket is also
available for viewing at the Conklin Dumps site's Administrative Record
repository located at: Conklin Town Hall, 1271 Conklin Road, Conklin,
NY 13748.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arnold Bernas at (212) 637-3964.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion
I. Introduction
EPA Region II announces its intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site
from the NPL and requests public comment on this action. The NPL is
Appendix B to the NCP, which EPA promulgated pursuant to Section 105 of
CERCLA, as amended. EPA identifies sites that appear to present a
significant risk to public health, welfare, or the environment and
maintains the NPL as the list of those sites. Sites on the NPL may be
the subject of remedial actions (RAs) financed by the Hazardous
Substances Superfund Response Trust Fund (the ``Fund''). Pursuant to
Sec. 300.425 (e)(3) of the NCP, any site deleted from the NPL remains
eligible for Fund-financed RAs, if conditions at such site warrant
action.
EPA will accept comments concerning the Conklin Dumps site for
thirty (30) days after publication of this document in the Federal
Register (until March 12, 1997).
Section II of this notice explains the criteria for deleting sites
from the NPL. Section III discusses the procedures that EPA is using
for this action. Section IV discusses how the Conklin Dumps site meets
the deletion criteria.
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
The NCP establishes the criteria that the Agency uses to delete
sites from the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR Sec. 300.425 (e), sites
may be deleted from the NPL where no further response is appropriate.
In making this determination, EPA, in consultation with the State, will
consider whether any of the following criteria have been met:
1. That responsible or other persons have implemented all
appropriate response actions required; or
2. All appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been
implemented, and no further cleanup by responsible parties is
appropriate; or
3. The remedial investigation has shown that the release poses no
significant threat to public health or the environment and, therefore,
taking remedial measures is not appropriate.
III. Deletion Procedures
The NCP provides that EPA shall not delete a site from the NPL
until the State in which the release was located has concurred, and the
public has been afforded an opportunity to comment on the proposed
deletion. Deletion of a site from the NPL does not affect responsible
party liability or impede agency efforts to recover costs associated
with response efforts. The NPL is designed primarily for informational
purposes and to assist agency management.
The following procedures were used for the intended deletion of the
Conklin Dumps site:
1. EPA Region II has recommended deletion and has prepared the
relevant documents.
2. The State of New York has concurred with the deletion decision.
3. Concurrent with this Notice of Intent to Delete, a notice has
been published in local newspapers and has been distributed to
appropriate federal, state and local officials, and other interested
parties. This notice announces a thirty (30)-day public comment period
on the deletion package starting on February 10, 1997 and concluding on
March 12, 1997.
4. The Region has made all relevant documents available in the
regional office and the local site information repository.
EPA Region II will accept and evaluate public comments and prepare
a Responsiveness Summary, which will address the comments received,
before a final decision is made. The Agency believes that deletion
procedures should focus on notice and comment at the local level.
Comments from the local community may be most pertinent to deletion
decisions. If, after consideration of these comments, EPA decides to
proceed with deletion, the EPA Regional Administrator will place a
Notice of Deletion in the Federal Register. The NPL will reflect any
deletions in the next update. Public notices and copies of the
Responsiveness Summary will be made available to the public by EPA
Region II.
IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion
Site History and Background
The Conklin Dumps site originally consisted of two landfilled areas
totaling about 37 acres, referred to as the Upper and Lower Landfills.
The Lower Landfill, which was operated between 1964 and 1969, contained
approximately 48,000 cubic yards of wastes before it was excavated and
consolidated with the Upper Landfill. The Upper Landfill, which
originally contained approximately 55,000 cubic yards of waste, was
operated from 1969 until 1975, when a closure order was issued by the
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The
property is currently owned by the Town of Conklin.
A two-phase hydrogeologic investigation was completed by O'Brien
and Gere Engineers for the Broome County Industrial Development Agency
in 1984 and 1985; additional field work was performed in 1986. In June
1986, the site was nominated for inclusion on the National Priorities
List. In June 1987, a Consent Order was signed
[[Page 5952]]
between the Town of Conklin and NYSDEC, which covered the performance
of a remedial investigation and feasibility study (RI/FS) and the
remedial design (RD)/remedial action (RA).
The RI, which was completed in December 1988, indicated limited
ground-water contamination in the immediate vicinity of the Upper
Landfill. Confirmatory sampling, performed in June 1990, confirmed the
RI findings and provided additional validated data.
An FS report was completed in January 1991.
EPA, in consultation with NYSDEC, issued a Proposed Plan on
February 3, 1991. A public comment period began on February 4, 1991 and
extended until March 6, 1991. A public meeting was held at the Conklin
Town Hall on February 25, 1991. A ROD, which was signed by the EPA
Regional Administrator on March 29, 1991, called for, among other
things, capping of the Upper Landfill and the Lower Landfill in-place,
leachate collection, either on- or off-site treatment of the leachate,
and long-term monitoring.
During preliminary design activities associated with the selected
remedy, it was determined that the construction of a leachate
collection trench and cap at the Lower Landfill would present
significant engineering difficulties due to the proximity of an
adjacent wetland and railroad tracks. In order to eliminate the
leachate seeps at the Lower Landfill, it would be necessary to install
a leachate collection system below the water table. A leachate
collection system installed below the water table, however, would
collect vast amounts of uncontaminated ground water and could adversely
impact the adjacent wetland by dewatering a portion of it, unless
hydraulic barriers were installed (which in itself could adversely
impact the wetland). In addition, installing a cap on the Lower
Landfill could negatively impact the adjacent wetland in that it would
encroach on the wetland. Due to these technical feasibility and
environmental concerns, the selected remedy was modified by an
Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD) in September 1992. The
modified remedy consists of the excavation of the Lower Landfill,
consolidation of the excavated Lower Landfill contents onto the Upper
Landfill, capping of the Upper Landfill, construction of a leachate
collection system, and either on- or off-site treatment of the
leachate.
Lower Landfill
The RD associated with the excavation of the Lower Landfill and
consolidation of the excavated wastes onto the Upper Landfill commenced
in April 1991 and was completed in September 1992.
The excavation of the Lower Landfill began in January 1993. The
composition of the wastes that were encountered during the excavation
was primarily soil and decomposed organic matter intermixed with scrap
metal, bottles and fabric from a local tent manufacturer. Although four
55 gallon drums were encountered, they were found to be empty or
contained non-hazardous debris, and were crushed and disposed of in the
Upper Landfill.
The waste that was excavated from the Lower Landfill was deposited
on the Upper Landfill in approximately one-foot lifts. This effort was
completed in July 1993.
A Remedial Action Report, documenting the completion of the
excavation of the Lower Landfill was approved on September 29, 1993.
Upper Landfill
The RD associated with the capping of the consolidated wastes on
the Upper Landfill and the construction of a leachate collection,
storage, and pre-treatment system commenced in April 1991 and was
completed in July 1993.
The compaction and regrading of the excavated waste mass,
installation of a leachate recovery system, construction of a final
cover system for the Upper Landfill, and the installation of an eight-
foot high chain linked fence around the Upper Landfill to restrict
access, was performed from October 1993 to November 1994.
Leachate Storage and Pre-Treatment System
In June 1995, the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewer Board
approved the Town of Conklin's application for discharge of the
leachate from the Upper Landfill into the sanitary sewer system for
treatment at the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewage Treatment Plant
in Vestal, New York. This approval required that the Town obtain an
industrial wastewater discharge permit and temporarily store the
leachate in an on-site storage tank while it is sampled and analyzed to
determine if it meets the discharge requirements of the permit.
The construction of a leachate storage, pre-treatment system, and
pipeline to the sewer interceptor, which began in November 1995,
included the installation of a 30,000 gallon horizontal steel storage
tank with a secondary containment dike, installation of a leachate pre-
treatment system, consisting of a series of bag filters to remove
solids, and installation of a pipe to discharge the leachate from the
storage and pre-treatment system to the sanitary sewer system. Although
the work was completed in January 1996, a final inspection could not be
conducted until after the snow melt in June 1996.
A Remedial Action Report, documenting the completion of the
construction of the final cover system and leachate collection system
for the Upper Landfill, leachate collection tank installation, and
construction of a pipeline to the sewer interceptor was approved on
July 15, 1996.
A Superfund Site Close-Out Report for the site was approved on
September 13, 1996.
Summary of Operation and Maintenance and Five-Year Review Requirements
Pursuant to terms of the Consent Order signed with NYSDEC on June
12, 1987, the Town of Conklin will perform post-remediation operation
and maintenance associated with the Upper Landfill's final cover system
and the leachate collection and pre-treatment systems. These activities
will consist of landfill cover system inspection and maintenance
(including grass mowing, fence repairs, soil cover repairs); leachate
collection system inspection, operation, and maintenance; and leachate
pre-treatment system inspection, operation, and maintenance. In
addition, groundwater, surface water, and leachate sampling and
analysis will be performed.
A statutory review of the long-term monitoring and inspection
program reports will be performed in January 1998, five years after the
initiation of the RA, to assure that the remedy remains effective in
protecting human health and the environment.
Summary of How the Deletion Criteria Has Been Met
All of the completion requirements for this site have been met as
specified in OSWER Directive 9320.2-09. Specifically, based on the
field observations associated with NYSDEC construction oversight, the
results of the preliminary post-construction and the final post-
construction inspections, and the results of samples collected during
the implantation of the remedy, it has been determined that
construction for the Conklin Dumps site has been completed and that the
construction activities performed on-site were consistent with the RD
plans and specifications and conform with the remedies selected in the
ROD, as modified by the ESD.
[[Page 5953]]
EPA, with concurrence from the State on December 16, 1996, has
determined that the response actions undertaken at the Conklin Dumps
site are protective of human health and the environment.
In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), sites may be deleted from the
NPL where no further response is appropriate. EPA, in consultation with
the State, has determined that all appropriate responses under CERCLA
have been implemented and that no further cleanup by responsible
parties is appropriate. Having met the deletion criteria, EPA proposes
to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the NPL.
Dated: January 17, 1997.
William J. Muszynski,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 97-2994 Filed 2-7-97; 8:45 am]
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