[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 191 (Wednesday, October 2, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 61802-61805]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-24641]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-7383-9]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Direct final notice of deletion of a portion of the Department 
of Energy (DOE) Mound Superfund Site from the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region V is 
publishing a direct final notice of deletion of Parcel 4 of the 
Department of Energy (DOE) Mound Superfund Site (Mound Site), located 
in Miamisburg, Ohio, 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, is appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the 
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). 
This direct final deletion is being published by EPA with the 
concurrence of the State of Ohio, through the Ohio Environmental 
Protection Agency (OEPA), because EPA and the OEPA have determined that 
the Department of Energy has implemented all appropriate response 
actions required with respect to Parcel 4. This deletion does not 
preclude future actions under Superfund or relieve DOE of their Long-
Term Stewardship or Operation and Maintenance responsibilities.

DATES: This direct final notice of partial deletion will be effective 
December 2, 2002 unless EPA receives adverse comments by October 31, 
2002. If adverse comments are received, EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal of the direct final notice of deletion in the Federal 
Register informing the public that the deletion will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed, telephoned, or e-mailed to: Timothy 
Fischer, Remedial Project Manager at (312) 886-5787, 
[email protected] or Gladys Beard, State NPL Deletion Process 
Manager at (312) 886-7254, [email protected], Superfund Division, 
U.S. EPA Region, 5, 77 W. Jackson Blvd. (SR-6J), Chicago, IL 60604.
    Information Repositories: Comprehensive information about the Site 
is available for viewing and copying at the Site information 
repositories located at: EPA Region V Library, 77 W. Jackson Boulevard, 
Chicago, Il 60604, (312) 353-5821, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 4 
p.m.; The CERCLA Public Reading Room, Miamisburg Senior Adult Center, 
305 Central Avenue, Miamisburg, OH 45342.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy Fischer, Remedial Project 
Manager at (312) 886-5787, [email protected] or Gladys Beard, 
State NPL Deletion Process Manager at (312) 886-7253, 
[email protected] or 1-800-621-8431, EPA Region V, 77 W. Jackson 
Boulevard, Mail Code SR-6J, Chicago, IL 60604.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region V is publishing this direct final notice of deletion of 
a portion of the Department of Energy Mound Superfund Site (Mound 
Site), from the NPL.
    EPA identifies sites that appear to present a significant risk to 
public health or the environment and maintains the NPL as the list of 
those sites. As described in section 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites 
deleted from the NPL remain eligible for remedial actions if conditions 
at a deleted site warrant such action.
    Because EPA considers this action to be non-controversial and 
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication of a notice of 
intent to delete. This action will be effective December 2, 2002 unless 
EPA receives adverse comments by November 1, 2002 on this document. If 
adverse comments are received within the 30-day public comment period 
on this document, 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, as appropriate, prepare 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. There will be no additional opportunity to comment.
    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 Parcel 4 of the DOE Mound 
Superfund Site and demonstrates how a portion of the Site meets the 
deletion criteria. Section V discusses EPA's action to delete a portion 
of the Site from the NPL unless adverse comments are received during 
the public comment period.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    Section 300.425(e) of the NCP provides that releases may be deleted 
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making a 
determination to delete a release from the NPL, EPA shall 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;
    ii. All appropriate Fund-financed (Hazardous Substance Superfund 
Response Trust Fund) responses under CERCLA have been implemented, and 
no further response 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, 
the taking of remedial measures is not appropriate.
    Even if a site or portions of a site are deleted from the NPL, 
where hazardous

[[Page 61803]]

substances, pollutants, or contaminants remain at the deleted site 
above levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure, 
CERCLA section 121(c), 42 U.S.C. 9621(c), requires that a subsequent 
review of the site be conducted at least every five years after the 
initiation of the remedial action at the deleted site to ensure that 
the action remains protective of public health and the environment. If 
new information becomes available which indicates a need for further 
action, DOE or EPA may initiate remedial actions. Whenever there is a 
significant release from a site deleted from the NPL, the deleted site 
may be restored to the NPL without application of the hazard ranking 
system.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to the partial deletion of this 
Site:
    (1) The EPA consulted with Ohio on the partial deletion of the Site 
from the NPL prior to developing this direct final notice of deletion.
    (2) Ohio concurred with the partial deletion of the Site from the 
NPL.
    (3) Concurrently with the publication of this direct final notice 
of partial deletion, a notice of intent to partially delete is 
published today in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of the Federal 
Register, as well as in a major local newspaper of general circulation 
at or near the Site, and is being distributed to appropriate federal, 
state, and local government officials and other interested parties. The 
newspaper notice announces the 30-day public comment period concerning 
the notice of intent to partially delete the Site from the NPL.
    (4) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the partial 
deletion in the site information repositories identified above.
    (5) If adverse comments are received within the 30-day public 
comment period on this document EPA will publish a timely notice of 
withdrawal of this direct final notice of partial deletion before its 
effective date and will prepare a response to comments and continue 
with a decision on the partial deletion based on the notice of intent 
to partially delete and the comments already received.
    Deletion or partial deletion of a site from the NPL does not itself 
create, alter, or revoke any individual's rights or obligations. 
Deletion or partial deletion of a site from the NPL does not in any way 
alter EPA's right to take enforcement actions, as appropriate. The NPL 
is designed primarily for informational purposes and to assist EPA 
management. Section 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 should future conditions warrant such actions.

IV. Basis for Partial Site Deletion

    The following information provides EPA's rationale for deleting 
Parcel 4 of the Mound Site from the NPL and EPA's finding that the 
criteria in 40 CFR 300.425(e) are satisfied:

Site Location

    The Mound Site is located in Miamisburg, Ohio, about 10 miles south 
of Dayton and 45 miles north of Cincinnati. The 306-acre site consists 
of a number of industrial buildings in the northern portion of the 
Mound Site, and open land in the southern portion. The Mound Site is 
located near an ancient Indian mound; hence the name of the DOE 
facility--the Mound Plant. Parcel 4 is generally bound to the north by 
the operational area of the plant, to the east by off-site residences, 
to the south by Benner Road, and to the west by the Miami-Erie Canal. A 
legal description of Parcel 4 is included in the Record of Decision for 
Parcel 4, and in the administrative record for the partial deletion 
decision.

Site History

    Most of the Site is owned by the United States Department of 
Energy, which began operations there in 1948 involving the manufacture 
of triggering devices for nuclear weapons. As a result of past disposal 
practices and contaminant releases to the environment, including 
radioactive contaminants, the Mound Site was listed on the NPL on 
November 21, 1989 (54 FR 48184). DOE signed a CERCLA Section 120 
Federal Facility Agreement (FFA) with EPA in October, 1990. In 1993, 
this agreement was modified and expanded to include OEPA. DOE serves as 
the lead agency for CERCLA-related activities at the Mound Site.

Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS)

    DOE, EPA, and OEPA originally planned to address the Mound Site's 
environmental restoration issues under a set of Operable Units(OUs), 
each of which would include a number of Potential Release Sites (RRSs). 
For each OU, the site would follow the traditional CERCLA Process: A 
Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS), followed by a Record 
of Decision (ROD) and Remedial Design/Remedial Action (RD/RA). In 1995, 
after beginning remedial investigations for several OUs, DOE and its 
regulators concluded that the OU approach was inefficient for Mound due 
to the number and variety of contaminants on the Site. DOE, EPA, and 
OEPA agreed that it would be better to evaluate each PRS or building 
separately, use removal action authority to remediate each one as 
needed, and establish a goal of no additional remediation other than 
institutional controls for the final remedy. Following completion of 
removal actions, a residual risk evaluation would be conducted to 
ensure that industrial use of the block or building would be safe. DOE, 
EPA, and OEPA called this approach the ``Mound 2000 Process.''
    The Mound 2000 Process established a Core Team consisting of 
representatives of DOE, EPA, and OEPA. The Core Team evaluates each of 
the potential contamination problems at the Mound Site and recommends 
the appropriate response. It uses information gathered from site 
visits, existing data, and knowledge of Mound Plant processes to 
determine whether or not any action is warranted for potential release 
sites. If a decision cannot be made based on the information on hand, 
the Core Team identifies the specific, additional information needed. 
The Core Team also receives input from technical experts and from the 
public. Thus, all stakeholders have an opportunity to express their 
opinions or suggestions for each potential problem area.
    In February 2001, DOE conducted a residual risk evaluation for 
Parcel 4 of the Mound Site. The purpose of the risk evaluation was to 
assess risks associated with levels of contamination that exist after 
completion of removal action. The residual risk evaluation method was 
consistent with the CERCLA baseline risk assessment method to ensure 
that future users of the land would not be exposed to contaminant 
levels that would pose unacceptable risks. The residual risk assessment 
for Parcel 4 determined that limiting use of Parcel 4 to industrial/
commercial uses was protective of human health and the environment.

Record of Decision Finding

    The ROD was signed for Parcel 4 of the Mound Site on March 8, 2001. 
The selected remedy included institutional controls in the form of deed 
restrictions on future land and groundwater use. DOE, or its 
successors, as the lead agency for this ROD, has the responsibility to 
monitor, maintain and enforce these institutional controls. In order to 
maintain protection of human health and the environment at Parcel 4 in 
the future, the institutional controls ensure:

[[Page 61804]]

    1. Maintenance of industrial/commercial land use;
    2. Prohibition against residential use;
    3. Prohibition against the use of groundwater;
    4. Site access for federal and state agencies for the purpose of 
sampling and monitoring; and
    5. Prohibition against removal of Parcel 4 soils from the DOE Mound 
property boundary (as owned in 1998) without approval from the Ohio 
Department of Health (ODH) and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency 
(OEPA).

ROD Implementation

    DOE has implemented the ROD for Parcel 4 by placing restrictions in 
the deed for the Parcel. DOE conveyed Parcel 4 to the Miamisburg Mound 
Community Improvement Corporation (MMCIC) on April 19, 2001. Because 
the restrictions have been placed in a Quit Claim Deed for Parcel 4 and 
that deed has been executed with the transfer of the land to the MMCIC, 
the restrictions are enforceable and the remedy is considered 
``implemented'.
    While EPA does not believe that any future response actions for 
Parcel 4 will be needed, if future conditions warrant such action, this 
area of the Mound Site would be eligible for Fund-financed response 
actions. This partial deletion affects Parcel 4 only. The remainder of 
the Site, save for those portions deleted in a previous action (see 66 
FR 10371-10374), remain on the NPL.

Operation and Maintenance of Institutional Controls

    Under the ROD signed on March 8, 2001, the Department of Energy 
committed itself to monitor and maintain the institutional controls for 
Parcel 4 required by the ROD, and to enforce them if necessary. The ROD 
also required DOE to provide U.S. EPA and Ohio EPA with periodic 
compliance assessments. Deletion of Parcel 4 from the NPL does not 
alter in any way DOE's Operation and Maintenance or Long-Term 
Stewardship obligations under the Parcel 4 ROD. A Long-Term Stewardship 
Plan is under development for the DOE Mound Plant. Long-Term 
Stewardship (LTS) is defined as ``the physical controls, institutions, 
information and other mechanisms needed to ensure protection of people 
and the environment at sites where DOE has completed or plans to 
complete `cleanup' (e.g., landfill closures, remedial actions, removal 
actions, and facility stabilization). This concept of long-term 
stewardship includes, inter alia, land use controls, monitoring, 
maintenance, and information management (This definition of long-term 
stewardship comes from the 1998 settlement agreement DOE entered into; 
NRDC, et al. v. Richardson, et al., Civ. No. 97-963).'' The LTS Plan 
for DOE Mound covers all the above concepts and refers to the processes 
set up to ensure the effectiveness of the institutional controls. For 
more information, contact Dann Bird, Miamisburg Mound Community 
Improvement Corporation, at (937) 865-4266 or Sue Smiley, Department of 
Energy, at (937) 865-3984.

Five-Year Review

    Because the remedy for Parcel 4 does not allow unlimited use of and 
unrestricted exposure to the property, DOE is required by Section 
121(c) of CERCLA to review the remedy to assure that it continues to 
protect human health and the environment. While CERCLA requires a 
review at least once every 5 years after the initiation of remedial 
action, DOE committed itself to conduct such reviews annually. DOE also 
committed itself to consult with U.S. EPA, Ohio EPA, and the Ohio 
Department of Health on these reviews. The first Five-Year Review of 
the Mound Plant was completed on September 28, 2001. It concluded that 
the Parcel 4 remedy remains protective of human health and the 
environment. An additional walkover inspection of the Parcel 4 property 
was accomplished on May 21, 2002, and no violations of the deed 
restrictions were documented.

Community Involvement

    Public participation activities with respect to any response 
actions in Parcel 4 have been satisfied as required in CERCLA section 
113(k), 42 U.S.C. 9613(k), and CERCLA section 117, 42 U.S.C. 9617. 
Documents in the deletion docket which EPA relied on for recommendation 
of the partial deletion of this Site from the NPL are available to the 
public in the information repositories.

Federal Facility Agreement

    Deletion of Parcel 4 from the NPL in no way alters the obligations 
of the Department of Energy under the Federal Facility Agreement under 
CERCLA Section 120, signed by U.S. EPA, Ohio EPA, and DOE in 1993, 
including Long-Term Stewardship or Operation and Maintenance 
responsibilities.

V. Deletion Action

    The EPA, with concurrence of the State of Ohio, has determined that 
the Department of Energy has implemented all appropriate response 
actions required, and that no further CERCLA response is appropriate to 
provide protection of human health and the environment. Therefore, EPA 
is deleting Parcel 4 of the Site from the NPL.
    Because EPA considers this action to be non-controversial and 
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication. This action will 
be effective December 2, 2002, unless EPA receives adverse comments by 
November 1, 2002. If adverse comments are received within the 30-day 
public comment period, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of this 
direct final notice of deletion before the effective date of the 
deletion and it will not take effect. EPA will prepare a response to 
comments and as appropriate continue with the deletion process on the 
basis of the notice of intent to delete and the comments already 
received. There will be no additional opportunity to comment.

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: September 17, 2002.
Norman Niedergang,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region V.

    For the reasons set out in this document, 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.

Appendix B--[Amended]

    2. Table 2 of Appendix B to Part 300 is amended under Ohio ``OH'' 
by revising the entry for ``Mound Plant (USDOE)'' and the city 
``Miamisburg.''

[[Page 61805]]



                  Table 2.--Federal Facilities Section
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              State                 Site name   City/County   (Notes) a
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                              * * * * * * *
OH...............................  Mound Plant   Miamisburg            P
                                       (USDOE)
 
                             * * * * * * *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(a)
P=Sites with partial deletion(s).

* * * * *
[FR Doc. 02-24641 Filed 10-1-02; 8:45 am]
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