[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 152 (Thursday, August 7, 1997)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 42414-42416]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-20583]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300
[FRL-5869-3]
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan;
National Priorities List
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to Delete Spokane Junkyard and Associated
Properties Site from the National Priorities List: Request for
Comments.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 announces
its intent to delete the Spokane Junkyard and Associated Properties
Site (the 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 Washington
Department of Ecology (Ecology) have determined that the Site poses no
significant threat to public health and the environment and, therefore,
all appropriate CERCLA actions have been implemented, and no further
cleanup is appropriate.
Dates: Comments concerning this site may be submitted on or before
September 8, 1997.
Addresses: Comments may be mailed to: Kevin Rochlin, Office of
Environmental Cleanup, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10,
1200 6th Avenue, Mail Stop: ECL-111, Seattle, Washington 98101.
[[Page 42415]]
Comprehensive information on this site is available through the EPA
Region 10 public docket, which is located at EPA's regional office and
is available for public viewing by appointment from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Requests for appointments to
view the Regional public docket should be directed to: Superfund
Records Center, EPA Region 10, 1200 6th Avenue, Seattle, Washington
98101.
Background information from the Regional public docket is also
available for viewing at the Spokane Junkyard and Associated Properties
Site information repository located at: Hillyard Branch Library, 4005
Cook Street, Spokane, Washington 99207.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Rochlin, Office of Environmental
Cleanup, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10, 1200 6th
Avenue, Mail Stop: ECL-111, Seattle, Washington 98101, (206) 553-2106
or, (800) 424-4372.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion
I. Introduction
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 announces its
intent to delete the Spokane Junkyard and Associated Properties Site
from the National Priorities List (NPL), Appendix B of the National Oil
and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR part
300, and requests comments on this deletion. EPA identified sites that
appear to present a significant risk to public health, welfare, or the
environment and maintains the NPL as the list of these sites. As
described in Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites deleted from the NPL
remain eligible for remedial action in the unlikely event that
conditions at the site warrant such action.
EPA will accept comments on the proposal to delete this site from
the NPL for 30 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 the procedures that EPA is
using for this action. Section IV discusses the Spokane Junkyard and
Associated Properties Site and explains 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 300.66(c)(7), sites may
be deleted from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In
making this determination, EPA will 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 response actions 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 response action at the site to ensure
that the selected remedy remains protective of public health and the
environment. Because hazardous substances are consolidated and capped
on the Site, EPA will conduct five-year reviews of this remedy.
If new information becomes available which indicates a need for
further action, EPA may initiate remedial actions. Whenever there is a
significant release from a site deleted from the NPL, the site may be
restored to the NPL without the application of the Hazardous Ranking
System.
III. Deletion Procedures
The following procedures were used for the intended deletion of
this site: (1) EPA has signified that the PRPs at the Site completed
the early action specified in the 1996 Action Memorandum; (2) The
Washington State Department of Ecology has concurred with the proposed
deletion decision; (3) A notice has been published in the local
newspaper and has been 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, (4) 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 itself create, alter, or
revoke any individual's rights or obligations. The NPL is designed
primarily for informational purposes and to assist Agency management.
As mentioned in Section II of this document, Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the
NCP states that the deletion of a site from the NPL does not preclude
eligibility for future response actions.
For deletion of this site, EPA's Regional Office will accept and
evaluate public comments on EPA's Notice of Intent to Delete before
making a final decision to delete. If necessary, the Agency will
prepare a Responsiveness Summary to address any significant public
comments 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 made available to local
residents by the Regional Office.
IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion
The following site summary provides the Agency's rational for the
proposal to delete this site from the NPL.
A. Site Background
The Spokane Junkyard and Associated Properties Site is located in
the Hillyard area, a light commercial and residential area in Spokane.
The Site covers approximately 16 acres and includes a former junkyard,
the former Spokane Metals facility, and two other parcels of land.
B. History
Spokane Metals operated a metal recycling facility at the Site from
the 1940's until the early 1980's. The metal recycling operations,
which included salvaging transformers and batteries, spread out onto
the other properties at the Site contaminating them with PCBs and lead.
The junkyard accumulated a wide variety of surplus materials including
asbestos, paint waste, and various liquid and solid wastes. Poor
storage practices of these materials also resulted in site
contamination.
After an explosive fire on the junkyard property in July 1987, EPA
conducted a Removal Action at the Site during 1988 and 1989. The most
contaminated materials were removed, and the Site was fenced to prevent
access. The Site was added to the NPL in May 1994.
An Engineering Evaluation/Cost Assessment (EE/CA) was completed in
December 1995. In January 1996, EPA held a public comment period on the
six Non-Time-Critical Removal Action (Removal Action) cleanup
alternatives in the EE/CA. The design for the Removal Action was
completed in the summer of 1996, and the Removal Action took place from
September to November 1996. EPA approved the Construction Report
documenting the
[[Page 42416]]
completion of the Removal Action on June 26, 1997.
C. Characterization of Risk
EPA conducted a risk assessment following the completion of the
Removal Action. Concentrations of contaminants remaining in the soil at
the Site were below State and Federal regulatory levels and risks for
both current and future use were within acceptable levels as defined by
the NCP.
One of the three criteria for deletion specifies that EPA may
delete a site when all appropriate responses under CERCLA have been
implemented, and no further action by responsible parties is
appropriate. EPA with concurrence from Ecology, believes that this
criterion for deletion has been met. Subsequently, EPA is proposing
deletion of this site from the NPL. Documentation supporting this
action is available from the docket.
Dated: July 25, 1997.
Charles E. Findley,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 97-20583 Filed 8-6-97; 8:45 am]
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