[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 222 (Friday, November 16, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 57686-57687]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-28629]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-7104-1]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of partial deletion of the Tobyhanna Army Depot 
Superfund Site from the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 announces 
the deletion of all portions of the Tobyhanna Army Depot Site except 
for contaminated groundwater plumes at OU1 and OU5 (Excluded Areas), 
from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant 
to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 
9605, is codified at appendix B of the National Oil and Hazardous 
Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR part 300. This 
partial deletion is consistent with the EPA's Notice of Policy Change: 
Policy Regarding Partial Deletion of Sites Listed on the National 
Priorities List. This partial deletion pertains to all portions of the 
Tobyhanna Army Depot Site except for the Excluded Areas, which are 
undergoing natural attenuation and long-term monitoring. These Excluded 
Areas will remain on the NPL until the performance standards specified 
in the Records of Decision are met. With the concurrence of the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania through the Pennsylvania Department of 
Environmental Protection (PADEP), the EPA has determined that 
responsible parties have implemented all appropriate response actions 
required at the Site, and that the portion to be deleted poses no 
significant threat to public health, welfare, or the environment; 
consequently, pursuant to CERCLA section 105, and 40 CFR 300.425(e), 
the Tobyhanna Army Depot Site, except for the Excluded Areas, is hereby 
deleted from the NPL.

EFFECTIVE DATE: November 16, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lorie Baker, Remedial Project Manager, 
(215) 814-3355, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 
3, Mail Code: 3HS34, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19103-2029, e-
mail: [email protected]. Information on the Site is available at the 
local information repository located at Coolbaugh Township Municipal 
Building, Route 611, Tobyhanna, PA 18466, (570) 895-6552.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The site to be partially deleted from the 
NPL is the Tobyhanna Army Depot Superfund Site located near the town of 
Tobyhanna, in Coolbaugh Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania. This 
partial deletion pertains to all portions of the Tobyhanna Army Depot 
except for the Excluded Areas, contaminated groundwater plumes at OU1 
and OU5. This Partial Deletion is in accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e) 
and the Notice of Policy Change: Partial Deletion of Sites Listed on 
the National Priorities List, 60 FR 55466 (Nov. 1, 1995). A Notice of 
Intent for Partial Deletion was published on June 12, 2001 (66 FR 
31582).
    The closing date for comments on the Notice of Intent for Partial 
Deletion was July 13, 2001. The EPA received two comments, both of 
which concerned OU4, the Powder Smoke Ridge Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) 
Area. The commentors were concerned that OU4 was being proposed for 
deletion from the NPL when there had been no site remediation for the 
area and that UXO was to remain onsite. The US Army (the responsible 
party) completed a removal action at OU4 which consisted of installing 
a barbed wire fence and posting warning signs in the area.
    This action was selected based on the difficulty in undertaking a 
clearance due to the age of the range and the rocky and heavily 
forested terrain. The remedial action chosen was institutional controls 
which includes maintenance of the physical controls, increased security 
patrols, proprietary controls, public education, and periodic review.
    EPA provided detailed responses to the comments in a Responsiveness 
Summary, which is contained in the Deletion Docket. The Responsiveness 
Summary and entries in the Deletion Docket may be reviewed at the EPA 
Region III office at 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA, or at the 
information repository listed above.
    The EPA identifies sites which appear to present a significant risk 
to public health, welfare, or the environment and it maintains the NPL 
as the list of those sites. Deletion of a site from the NPL does not 
affect responsible party liability or impede agency efforts to recover 
costs associated with response efforts. Section 300.425(e)(3) of the 
NCP states that whenever there is a significant release from a site 
deleted from the NPL, the site may be restored to the NPL without 
application of the Hazard Ranking System.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

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

    Dated: October 24, 2001.
Thomas C. Voltaggio,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 40 CFR Part 300 is amended 
as follows:

PART 300--[AMENDED]

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

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; E.O. 
12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp., p.351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR 
2923, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 193.

    2. Table 2 of Appendix B to Part 300 is amended by revising the 
entry for ``Tobyhanna Army Depot'' under PA to read as follows:

[[Page 57687]]

Appendix B to Part 300--National Priorities List

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                                      Table 2.--Federal Facilities Section
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                St                            Site name                 City/County             Notes (a)
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*                  *                  *                  *                  *                  *
                                                        *
PA................................  Tobyhanna Army Depot.........  Tobyhanna...........  P
 
*                  *                  *                  *                  *                  *
                                                        *
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    (a) * * *
    P=Sites with partial deletion(s).
[FR Doc. 01-28629 Filed 11-15-01; 8:45 am]
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