[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 64 (Friday, April 3, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 16465-16467]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-8787]


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

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5991-3]

40 CFR Part 300


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of intent to delete the National Lead Industries/
Taracorp/Golden Auto Parts site from the national priorities list; 
request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) 
Region V announces its intent to delete the National Lead Industries/
Taracorp/Golden Auto Parts 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 U.S. EPA 
promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) as amended. 
This action is being taken by U.S. EPA, because it has been determined 
that all Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been implemented and 
U.S. EPA, in consultation with the State

[[Page 16466]]

of Minnesota, has determined that no further response is appropriate. 
Moreover, U.S. 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 the Site from the 
NPL may be submitted on or before May 4, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to Gladys Beard, Associate Remedial 
Project Manager, Superfund Division, U.S. EPA, Region V, 77 W. Jackson 
Blvd. (SR-6J), Chicago, IL 60604. Comprehensive information on the site 
is available at U.S. EPA's Region V office and at the local information 
repository located at: St. Louis Park Library, 3240 Library Lane, St. 
Louis Park, MN 55417. Requests for comprehensive copies of documents 
should be directed formally to the Region V Docket Office. The address 
and phone number for the Regional Docket Officer is Jan Pfundheller (H-
7J), U.S. EPA, Region V, 77 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604, (312) 
353-5821.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gladys Beard (SR-6J), Associate 
Remedial Project Manager, Superfund Division, U.S. EPA, Region V, 77 W. 
Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604, (312) 886-7253 or Don De Blasio (P-
19J), Office of Public Affairs, U.S. EPA, Region V, 77 W. Jackson 
Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604, (312) 886-4360.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region V announces 
its intent to delete the National Lead Industries/Taracorp/Golden Auto 
Parts Site from the National Priorities List (NPL), which constitutes 
Appendix B of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution 
Contingency Plan (NCP), and requests comments on the proposed 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 Potentially Responsible Parties or 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.
    The U.S. EPA will accept comments on this proposal for thirty (30) 
days after publication of this notice 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 history of this site and 
explains how the Site meets the deletion criteria.
    Deletion of sites from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or 
revoke any individual's rights or obligations. Furthermore, deletion 
from the NPL does not in any way alter U.S. EPA's right to take 
enforcement actions, as appropriate. The NPL is designed primarily for 
informational purposes and to assist in Agency management.

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, U.S. EPA will consider, in consultation with 
the State, whether any of the following criteria have been met:
    (i) Responsible parties or other persons have implemented all 
appropriate response actions required; or
    (ii) All appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been 
implemented, and no further response action is appropriate; or
    (iii) The Remedial Investigation has shown that the release poses 
no significant threat to public health or the environment and, 
therefore, remedial measures are not appropriate.

III. Deletion Procedures

    Upon determination that at least one of the criteria described in 
Sec. 300.425(e) has been met, U.S. EPA may formally begin deletion 
procedures once the State has concurred. This Federal Register notice, 
and a concurrent notice in the local newspaper in the vicinity of the 
Site, announce the initiation of a 30-day comment period. The public is 
asked to comment on U.S. EPA's intention to delete the Site from the 
NPL. All critical documents needed to evaluate U.S. EPA's decision are 
included in the information repository and the deletion docket.
    Upon completion of the public comment period, if necessary, the 
U.S. EPA Regional Office will prepare a Responsiveness Summary to 
evaluate and address comments that were received. The public is welcome 
to contact the U.S. EPA Region V Office to obtain a copy of this 
responsiveness summary, if one is prepared. If U.S. EPA then determines 
the deletion from the NPL is appropriate, final notice of deletion will 
be published in the Federal Register.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

    The NL/Taracorp/Golden Auto Parts Sites was the location of a 
secondary lead smelter from 1940 to 1982. The Site is located in 
Hennepin County, Minnesota, in the City of St. Louis Park. The Site 
consists of contiguous properties, one portion which was formerly owned 
by NL Industries and Taracorp, Inc. at 3645 Hampshire Avenue South and 
the other portion which is owned by Morris and Harry Golden at 7003 
West Lake Street. The Goldens now own both of these properties.
    Originally owned by NL Industries, Inc., the lead smelting facility 
was sold to Taracorp in August 1979. Taracorp ceased operation of the 
smelter in February 1981. NL sold the Golden property to Republic 
Enterprises, Inc. in 1962, who in turn sold this four and one-half acre 
parcel to Morris and Harry Golden. As previously mentioned, the Goldens 
now also own the Taracorp property of the site. The Goldens leased the 
Golden property to Golden Auto Parts Co., who operated an automobile 
wrecking and used automobile parts business from 1964 to January 1983.
    The land use adjacent to the Site is light industry and commercial. 
Residential areas are within 1/4 mile of the Site on the north, east, 
and western sides. The prominent wind direction is from west-northwest 
towards east-southeast. Minnehaha Creek is about one-half mile to the 
south and the Mississippi River is approximately six miles northwest of 
the Site. The Site is not in a floodplain.
    Soils in the area consist of fine sands to course gravel, separated 
by glacial till. The depth of the surface drift varies from 30 to 100 
feet and is underlain by five bedrock aquifers. The uppermost aquifer 
(the Platteville ) is located at about 90 to 100 feet, with the St. 
Peter aquifer located just below (about 100 to 200 feet). The St. Peter 
formation is underlain by the Prairie du Chien-Jordan group (380 feet), 
the Ironton-Galesville aquifer (700 feet) and the Mt. Simon-Hinkley 
aquifer (1,000 feet). The Prairie du Chien-Jordan and Mt. Simon-Hinkley 
aquifers are the primary sources of drinking water in the area, 
supplying 90% of all ground water used in the region.

[[Page 16467]]

    A secondary lead smelter was operated at the site location from 
1940 until 1982. The secondary lead smelting operations recovered lead 
from lead plates, battery fragments, and lead containers. A blast 
furnace was used until 1960, when it was replaced with a reverberatory 
smelting furnace. Industrial operations and on-site waste disposal 
activities conducted from 1940 until 1982 resulted in elevated lead 
levels in air and on-site soils and were suspected of causing elevated 
lead levels in on-site groundwater and off-site soils. The Site was 
proposed for the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites on 
October 22, 1981, the site was placed on the NPL September 8, 1983.
    The MPCA issued a Request For Response Action to NL, Taracorp, and 
Golden Auto Parts in January 1984. In 1985, NL voluntarily entered into 
an Administrative Order and Response Order by Consent (Consent Order) 
with the MPCA and U.S. EPA, in accordance with the Minnesota 
Environmental Response and Liability Act (MERLA) and the Federal 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and the Liability 
Act (CERCLA). The Consent Order called for the design and 
implementation of the following activities:
    1. On-site soils investigation, stabilization, and cleanup;
    2. On-site groundwater investigation and long-term groundwater 
monitoring program; and
    3. An off-site soil remedial investigation, and if necessary, a 
feasibility study to evaluate remedial alternatives.
    NL conducted these activities with oversight by MPCA and U.S. EPA.
    The on-site investigation and cleanup activities were conducted 
between 1985 and 1988. Except for ongoing and future long-term 
operation, maintenance, and monitoring, NL completed the final onsite 
remedial activity, capping the Site with asphalt, in June 1988. NL 
investigated the groundwater quality beneath the Site for site-related 
contaminants. Significant levels of such contaminants were not 
detected. In November 1987, MPCA, U. S. EPA and NL agreed to the 
details of the 30-year long-term groundwater monitoring program which 
started with the effective date of the Consent Order. The purpose of 
the monitoring program is to ensure that the groundwater quality on-
site remains acceptable. NL is required to submit Annual Reports for 
the long-term monitoring, and long-term maintenance which includes 
maintaining the intergrity of the asphalt cap. The Consent Order 
requires NL to take action if, in the future, site related contaminants 
are detected in the groundwater in excess of prescribed levels set 
forth in the Consent Order.
    As part of the Consent Order, NL was also required to investigate 
the surface soils near the Site, and if necessary, prepare a Response 
Action Plan to conduct Response Actions for contaminated surface soils. 
The Consent Order prescribed that NL would conduct a phased 
investigation. The first phase involved soil sampling in the nearest 
prominent down wind residential area defined as Zone I and included 
sampling along nearby highways and in public property areas. If soil 
lead levels were greater than 750 parts per million (ppm) for any 
residence on the outer (east) edge of Zone I, NL would be required to 
conduct Phase 2 of the soil sampling in Zone II. In addition, NL would 
be required to conduct a Feasibility Study to examine cleanup options 
if the Zone I and/or Zone II soils were equal to or greater than 750 
ppm and clearly attributable to the secondary lead smelter. NL 
completed the Phase I off-site soils investigation in 1987. Based on 
the Zone I sampling results, NL recommended to MPCA and to U. S. EPA 
that no additional/sampling or cleanup activities was necessary for the 
off-site soils.
    Before accepting NL's recommendation, U. S. EPA developed its own 
risk assessment for the off-site soils in Zone I. U.S. EPA conducted 
its own risk assessment (called an Endangerment Assessment), because a 
risk assessment methodology for estimating public health impacts of 
contamination was developed after the NL Consent Order was signed, and 
therefore, the most recent methodology was not employed by NL. U. S. 
EPA conducted the NL off-site Soil Endangerment Assessment in 
accordance with the Superfund Public Health Evaluation Manual, October 
1986. The Endangerment Assessment concluded that because the levels did 
not exceed the 500-1000 ppm soil lead guideline the Zone I soil lead 
levels did not present an imminent public health threat.
    On September 23, 1988, a Record Of Decision (ROD) was signed. The 
selected remedy for this site is no further action.
    A five-year review pursuant to OSWER Directive 9355.7-02 (`` 
Structure and Components of Five-Year Reviews'') was completed for the 
Site on September 30, 1994. The site was inspected by the State on 
September 7, 1994. The following observations were made: (1) The 
asphalt cap is in place and remains in sufficiently good condition to 
prevent public exposure to contaminated soils at the Site; (2) The cap 
appears to be effective in minimizing infiltration of precipitation in 
the vicinity of the Site and monitoring demonstrates that it is 
protective of ground water quality; (3) The remedy as installed remains 
protective of public health and the environment. The next Five-Year 
review is scheduled for September 30, 1999.
    EPA, with concurrence from the State of Minnesota, has determined 
that all appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA at the 
National Lead Industries/Taracorp/Golden Auto Parts Site have been 
completed, and no further CERCLA response actions are appropriate in 
order to provide protection of human health and environment. Therefore, 
EPA proposes to delete the Site from the NPL.

    Dated: March 24, 1998.
David A. Ullrich,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region V.
[FR Doc. 98-8787 Filed 4-2-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P