[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 162 (Tuesday, August 21, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 43806-43808]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-20890]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-7034-9]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Direct final deletion of the V&M/Albaladejo Superfund Site from 
the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region II, 
announces the deletion of the V&M/Albaladejo Superfund Site (Site), 
located in the Almirante Norte Ward of the municipality of Vega Baja, 
Puerto Rico, from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests 
public comment on this action.
    The NPL is Appendix B of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances 
Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR part 300, which EPA 
promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended. 
This Direct Final Notice of Deletion is being published by EPA with the 
concurrence of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, through the Puerto Rico 
Environmental Quality Board (EQB). EPA and EQB have determined that all 
appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed and, 
therefore, no further cleanup pursuant to CERCLA is appropriate. 
Moreover, EPA and EQB have determined that the

[[Page 43807]]

Site poses no significant threat to public health or the environment.

DATES: This direct final deletion will be effective October 22, 2001 
unless EPA receives significant adverse comments by September 20, 2001. 
If significant adverse comments are received, EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal of the direct final deletion in the Federal Register, 
informing the public that the deletion will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Caroline Kwan, Remedial Project 
Manager, Emergency and Remedial Response Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region II, 290 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York, New 
York 10007-1866.

Information Repositories

    Comprehensive information about the Site is available for viewing 
and copying at the Site information repositories located at:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region II, Superfund Records 
Center, 290 Broadway, Room 1828, New York, New York 10007-1866, (212) 
637-4308, Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday; and,

Vega Baja City Hall, Corner of Jose Francisco Nater and Betances 
Streets, P.O. Box 4555, Vega Baja, Puerto Rico 00693, (787) 855-2500/
2515, Hours: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday; and,

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Caribbean Environmental 
Protection Division, Centro Europa Building, 1492 Ponce De Leon Avenue, 
Suite 207, Santurce, Puerto Rico 00907, (787) 729-6951 Ext. 263, Hours: 
8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday; By Appointment, and,

Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board, Emergency Response and 
Superfund Program, National Bank Plaza, 431 Ponce De Leon Avenue, Hato 
Rey, Puerto Rico 00917, (787) 767-8181 Ext. 2230, Hours: 9 a.m. to 3 
p.m., Monday through Friday, By Appointment.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Caroline Kwan, Remedial Project 
Manager, U.S. EPA Region II, 290 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York, New 
York 10007-1866, (212) 637-4275; Fax Number (212) 637-4284; email 
address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region II announces the deletion of the V&M/Albaladejo 
Superfund Site from the NPL. The EPA maintains the NPL as the list of 
those sites that appear to present a significant risk to public health 
or the environment. Sites on the NPL can have remedial actions financed 
by the Hazardous Substances Superfund Response Trust Fund. As described 
in Section 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, a site deleted from the NPL 
remains eligible for remedial actions if conditions at the site warrant 
such action.
    EPA considers this action to be noncontroversial and routine, and 
therefore, EPA is taking it without prior publication of a Notice of 
Intent to Delete. This action will be effective October 22, 2001 unless 
EPA receives significant adverse comments by September 20, 2001 on this 
action. If significant adverse comments are received within the 30-day 
public comment period of this action, EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal of this Direct Final Deletion before the effective date of 
the deletion and the deletion will not take effect. EPA will, if 
appropriate, prepare a response to comments and continue with the 
deletion process on the basis of the Notice Intent to Delete and the 
comments already received. There will be no additional opportunity to 
comment.
    Section II explains the criteria for deleting sites from the NPL. 
Section III discusses procedures that EPA is using for this action. 
Section IV discusses the V&M/Albaladejo Superfund Site and demonstrates 
how it meets the deletion criteria.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    Section 300.425(e) of the NCP provides that Sites may be deleted 
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making this 
determination, EPA, in consultation with the Commonwealth, shall 
consider whether any of the following criteria have been met:
    i. Responsible parties or other parties have implemented all 
appropriate response actions required; or,
    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, 
implementing remedial measures is not appropriate.
    EPA will not conduct any further reviews of this Site because EPA 
believes that this Site is suitable for unlimited use and unrestricted 
exposure. If new information becomes available which indicates a need 
for further action, EPA may initiate such actions based upon 
Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to deletion of the Site.
    (1) From January 1998 to June 1998, EPA conducted a removal action 
at the Site.
    (2) EPA conducted confirmatory sampling and a remedial 
investigation to determine the extent of the contamination of soil and 
groundwater at the Site.
    (3) On September 29, 2000, EPA issued a Record of Decision which 
selected a no further action remedy for the Site. EPA also issued a 
Final Close Out report on September 29, 2000 which summarized the 
actions taken at the Site.
    (4) The EPA consulted with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico 
Environmental Quality Board on the deletion of the Site from the NPL 
prior to developing this Direct Final Deletion.
    (5) The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico concurred with the deletion of 
the Site from the NPL on November 3, 2000.
    (6) Concurrently with the publication of this Direct Final 
Deletion, a parallel Notice of Intent to Delete has been published 
today in the Notice section of the Federal Register. Notices are also 
being published in local newspapers and appropriate notice is being 
provided to federal, state, and local government officials and other 
interested parties.
    (7) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the deletion in 
the Site information repositories identified above.
    (8) If no significant adverse comments are received, the Site will 
be deleted. If significant adverse comments are received within the 30-
day public comment period on this action or the Notice of Intent to 
Delete published in today's Federal Register, EPA will publish a timely 
notice of withdrawal of this Direct Final Deletion before its effective 
date. EPA will prepare, if appropriate, a response to comments and 
continue with the deletion process on the basis of the notice of Intent 
to Delete and the comments already received.
    Deletion of a site from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or 
revoke any individual's rights or obligations. Deletion of a site from 
the NPL does not in any way alter EPA's right to take enforcement 
actions, as appropriate.

[[Page 43808]]

The NPL is designed primarily for informational purposes and to assist 
EPA management.

IV. Basis for Site Deletion

    The V&M/Albaladejo Site is located off State Road No. 160, 
Kilometer 4.2 in the Almirante Norte Ward of the municipality of Vega 
Baja, Puerto Rico. It is reached via a dirt road extending about one 
mile west from Route 160. The exact Site acreage is unknown but 
generally consists of two farms, the V&M property and the Albaladejo 
Farm. The area is rural and characterized by rugged, heavily-vegetated, 
hilly terrain with small farms located in the valleys. The region is 
sparsely populated within a one-mile radius of the Site. Fewer than 100 
residents are estimated to live within one-quarter mile of the Site.
    The Site was used for burning and/or dumping of plastic-coated 
electric cables, electrical equipment, and car batteries. Wire and 
other materials were burned to recover the copper, aluminum, and lead 
contained therein. No containment (i.e., berm, liner) system is known 
to have been used nor has any been observed. It is not known when the 
burning activity began at the Site. One of the farm owners reported 
that trucks had been entering the Site carrying wastes since 1985. 
Burning reportedly ceased on the V&M property in 1986 when it was 
purchased by its current owner, but continued on the Albaladejo Farm 
into 1988. The total quantity of waste disposed and burned at the Site 
is unknown. Four historical waste disposal/burn areas were identified.
    In August 1988, the Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board (EQB) 
conducted a preliminary assessment at the Site. In January 1989, EPA 
conducted a site investigation which found elevated levels of copper 
and antimony in surface soil samples at the Site.
    In June 1996, the V&M Site was proposed to the National Priorities 
List (NPL), with the final listing on December 26, 1996.
    A time-critical removal action was conducted from January through 
June 1998. Based on previous sampling information, contaminated soils 
were excavated from the four zones. In total, approximately 5,565 cubic 
yards of contaminated soils were excavated, stockpiled, and stabilized 
on-Site in a designated area prior to their removal and proper off-Site 
disposal. The removal action was completed in June 1998.
    Confirmatory testing of burn area soils after the excavation of 
contaminated soils indicated that the concentrations of lead generally 
had been reduced to below an average concentration of 400 ppm, a level 
EPA has determined to be protective of children in a residential 
environment.
    Between March and November, 1998, EPA collected four rounds of 
groundwater samples from six on-Site monitoring wells during the 
Remedial Investigation (RI) for the V&M Site. Results indicated a 
decrease in detection of inorganic analytes in the groundwater, 
coinciding with the completion of the soil removal action. The decrease 
in levels of inorganics indicated the successful removal of 
contaminated soil, the source of groundwater contamination. Round 4 
sample results were all below drinking water standards.
    On September 29, 2000, EPA issued a Record of Decision, selecting 
No Further Action as the remedy for the Site. It was determined that 
site-related groundwater contamination does not pose a significant 
threat to human health or the environment; therefore, remediation is 
not necessary.
    The EPA, with concurrence of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, has 
determined that all appropriate responses under CERCLA have been 
completed, and that no further response actions under CERCLA are 
necessary. Therefore, EPA is deleting the Site from the NPL.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Chemicals, 
Hazardous waste, Hazardous substances, Intergovernmental relations, 
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water 
pollution control, Water supply.

    Dated: August 2, 2001.
William J. Muszynski,
Acting Regional Administrator, U.S. EPA, Region II.

    For the reasons set out in this document 40 CFR part 300 is amended 
as follows:

PART 300--[AMENDED]

    The authority citation for part 300 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 42 U.S.C. 9601-9675; E.O. 
12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp., p. 351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR 
2923, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 193.

Appendix B--[Amended]

    2. Table 1 of Appendix B to part 300 is amended under Puerto Rico 
(PR) by removing the site name ``V&M/Albaladejo'' and the city 
``Almirante Norte Ward''.

[FR Doc. 01-20890 Filed 8-20-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P