[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 137 (Thursday, July 17, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 38239-38241]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-18405]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL 5857-6]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan 
National Priorities List

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of intent to delete the Bruin Lagoon Site from the 
National Priorities List and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III announces 
its intent to delete the Bruin Lagoon Site (Site) from the National 
Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this 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), as amended. EPA and 
the State of Pennsylvania have determined that all appropriate CERCLA 
response actions have been implemented and that no further cleanup is 
appropriate. Moreover, EPA and the State have determined that remedial 
activities conducted at the Site to date have been protective of public 
health, welfare, and the environment.

DATES: Comments concerning the proposed deletion of this Site from the 
NPL may be submitted on or before August 18, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted to Garth Connor, (3HW22), Project 
Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 841 Chestnut Building, 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19107, (215) 566-3209.
    Comprehensive information on this Site is available through the 
public docket which is available for viewing at

[[Page 38240]]

the Site Information Repositories at the following locations:

U.S. EPA Region III, Hazardous Waste Technical Information Center, 841 
Chestnut Building, Philadelphia, PA 19107, (215) 566-5363.
Bruin Borough Fire Hall, 161 Water Street, Bruin, PA 16022, (412) 753-
2622.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Garth Connor (3HW22), U.S. EPA 
Region III, 841 Chestnut Building, Philadelphia, PA, 19107, (215) 566-
3209.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Table of Contents:

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

I. Introduction

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III announces its 
intent to delete the Bruin Lagoon Site, Bruin Borough, Butler County, 
Pennsylvania, from the National Priorities List (NPL), Appendix B of 
the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan 
(NCP), and requests comments on this deletion. The 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 financed by the 
Hazardous Substance Superfund Response Trust Fund (Fund). Pursuant to 
Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, any site deleted from the NPL remains 
eligible for Fund-financed remedial actions if conditions at the site 
warrant such action.
    EPA will accept comments on the proposal to delete this Site from 
the NPL for thirty calendar 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 how the 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 300.425(e), sites may be 
deleted from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In 
making this determination, EPA will consider whether any of the 
following criteria have been met:
    (i) EPA, in consultation with the State, has determined that 
responsible or other parties have implemented all appropriate response 
actions required; or
    (ii) All appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been 
implemented and EPA, in consultation with the State, has determined 
that no further cleanup by responsible parties is appropriate; or
    (iii) Based on a remedial investigation, EPA, in consultation with 
the State, has determined that the release poses no significant threat 
to public health or the environment and, therefore, taking of remedial 
measures is not appropriate.
    (iv) In addition to the above, for all remedial actions which 
result in hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants remaining 
at the site above levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted 
exposure, CERCLA section 121(c), 42 U.S.C. 9621(c), the NCP at 40 CFR 
300.430(f)(4)(ii) and EPA policy, OSWER Directive 9320.2-09, dated 
August 1995, provide that a subsequent review of the site will be 
conducted at least every five years after the initiation of the first 
remedial action to ensure that the site remains protective of public 
health and the environment. In the case of this Site, EPA conducted a 
``five year review'' in April, 1993. Based on this review, EPA 
determined that conditions at the Site remain protective of public 
health and the environment. As explained below, the Site means the 
NCP's deletion criteria listed above. Five-year reviews will continue 
to be conducted at the site until no hazardous substances, pollutants, 
or contaminants remain above levels that allow for unlimited use and 
unrestricted exposure. Releases shall not be deleted from the NPL until 
the state in which the release was located has concurred on the 
proposed deletion. 40 CFR 300.425(e)(2).
    All releases deleted from the NPL are eligible for further Fund-
financed remedial actions should future conditions warrant such action. 
Whenever there is a significant release from a site deleted from the 
NPL, the site can be restored to the NPL without application of the 
Hazard Ranking System. 40 CFR 300.425(e)(3).

III. Deletion Procedures

    Section 300.425(e)(4) of the NCP sets forth requirements for site 
deletions to assure public involvement in the decision. During the 
proposal to delete a site from the NPL, EPA is required to conduct the 
following activities:
    (i) Publish a notice of intent in the Federal Register and solicit 
comment through a public comment period of a minimum of 30 calendar 
days;
    (ii) Publish a notice of availability of the notice of intent to 
delete in a major local newspaper of general circulation at or near the 
site that is proposed for deletion;
    (iii) Place copies of information supporting the proposed deletion 
in the information repository at or near the site proposed; and,
    (iv) Respond to each significant comment and any significant new 
data submitted during the comment period in a Responsiveness Summary.
    If appropriate, after consideration of comments received during the 
public comment period, EPA then publishes a notice of deletion in the 
Federal Register and places the final deletion package, including the 
Responsiveness Summary, in the Site repositories. Deletion of sites 
from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or revoke any individual's 
rights or obligations. As stated in Section II of this document, 
Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP provides that the deletion of a site from 
the NPL does not preclude eligibility for future response.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

    The Bruin Lagoon Site occupies nearly six fenced acres, and is 
located in Bruin Borough, Butler County, Pennsylvania approximately 45 
miles north of Pittsburgh. The Site is partially situated in the 100-
year flood plain of the South Branch of Bear Creek, a tributary of the 
Allegheny River. The Site is bounded on the west by State Route 268 and 
residential properties, on the north by a residential property, on the 
east by the South Branch of Bear Creek, and on the south by an unnamed 
tributary of Bear Creek. A tributary of the Allegheny River.
    Operations began at the Site in the 1930s when it was used as a 
disposal area for petroleum refining wastes. For over forty years, 
Bruin Lagoon was used for the disposal of sludge from production of 
white oil (mineral oil), motor oil reclamation wastes, settlings from 
crude storage tanks, and spent bauxite from white oil filtration. Other 
wastes which may have been deposited in the lagoon during this period 
include sodium hydroxide, sodium bicarbonate, refined oils, ash and 
coal fines.
    The Bruin Lagoon Site gained national attention in 1968 when the 
lagoon overflowed its dike into the adjoining Bear Creek. As a result 
of the spill, an estimated three million fish were killed in the Bear 
Creek and the Allegheny River. The Site was proposed to the National 
Priority List in October, 1981 and was finalized in September, 1983. In 
June 1981, EPA began a fund-lead Remedial Investigation and

[[Page 38241]]

Feasibility Study (RI/FS) at the Site. EPA installed monitoring wells 
and collected samples from surface water, lagoon sludge, and liquids 
contained in onsite tanks. A Record of Decision (ROD) was signed in 
June, 1982 which called for onsite containment and dike stabilization 
at the Site.
    In April, 1984, toxic gases were released from the lagoon when a 
previously unidentified crust layer was broken during the remedial 
construction. The gas was found to contain dangerous concentrations of 
carbon dioxide, sulfuric acid mist and hydrogen sulfide. Based on these 
findings, EPA suspended the cleanup activity at the Site, and began an 
immediate removal action to prevent a further release of toxic gas into 
the nearby residential community. As part of this removal action, the 
open lagoon was covered, sludges were stabilized, gas monitoring wells 
were installed, and additional soil and sludge samples were collected 
for further analysis. The removal action was completed in September, 
1984.
    In January 1985, EPA began a second RI/FS at the Site. In September 
1986, a second ROD for the Site was signed. The remedy in this ROD 
included onsite stabilization of sludges in the lagoon area, completion 
of the dike reinforcement, installation of a new monitoring well 
network and capping the lagoon area with a multi-layer cap. This 
construction was completed in March, 1992. Approximately 80,000 cubic 
yards of contaminated waste were stabilized and placed under the multi-
layer cap.
    A five-year review has been conducted and was completed in April, 
1993. The five-year review confirmed that the remedy is in place, the 
multi-layer cap is working properly, and the ground surface is covered 
with vegetation. It is therefore apparent that the remedy is still 
protective of the public health and the environment. The next five-year 
review must be completed by April 30, 1998. Subsequent five-year 
reviews will be conducted pursuant to OSWER Directive 9355.7-02. 
``Structure and Components of Five-Year Reviews,'' or other applicable 
guidance where it exists.
    Long-term operation and maintenance activities at this Site are 
performed by the State of Pennsylvania. These activities includes 
annual inspections of the Site to ensure that erosion control measures 
are effective, routine mowing of the onsite vegetation, maintenance of 
the perimeter fence and periodic sampling of the onsite monitoring 
wells.
    The remedies selected for this Site has been implemented in 
accordance with the two RODs, as modified and expanded in the EPA-
approved Remedial Designs. The completion of the cleanup has resulted 
in the significant reduction of the long-term potential for release of 
contaminated wastes within the lagoon area to the surrounding 
environment. Human health threats and potential environmental impacts 
from the Site have been minimized. EPA and the State of Pennsylvania 
find that the remedies implemented continue to provide adequate 
protection of human health and the environment.
    EPA, with the concurrence of the State of Pennsylvania, believes 
that all the criteria for deletion of this Site have been met. 
Therefore, EPA is proposing deletion of this Site from the NPL.

    Dated: June 24, 1997.
W. Michael McCabe,
Regional Administrator, USEPA Region III.
[FR Doc. 97-18405 Filed 7-16-97; 8:45am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-M