[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 52 (Wednesday, March 17, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12608-12612]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-5875]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-7637-4]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of intent to delete the Love Canal Superfund site from 
the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region II, 
announces its intent to delete the Love Canal Superfund site (Site) 
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), as amended. EPA and 
the State of New York (State), through the New York State Department of 
Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), have determined that all 
appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been implemented and 
that no further response action pursuant to CERCLA are appropriate.

DATES: Comments concerning this Action must be received by April 16, 
2004.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be submitted to: Damian J. Duda, 
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.
    Comprehensive information on this Site is available through the EPA 
Region II public docket contained at: U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region II, Superfund Records Center, 290 Broadway, Room 1828, 
New York, NY 10007-1866, (212) 637-4308.
    Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
    Information on the Site is also available for viewing at the 
following information repository: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
530 Third Street, Niagara Falls, New York 10460, (716) 285-8842.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Damian Duda, at the address provided 
above, by telephone at (212) 637-4269, by electronic mail at 
[email protected] or by FAX at (212) 637-3966.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region II announces its intent to delete the Love Canal 
Superfund site, located in the City of Niagara Falls, Niagara County, 
New York from the NPL and requests public comment on this action. The 
NPL is Appendix B of the NCP, which EPA promulgated, pursuant to 
Section 105 of CERCLA. 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. Sites on the NPL can have remedial 
actions financed by the Hazardous Substances Superfund Response Trust 
Fund (Fund). As described in 40 CFR 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.
    The Site is located in the southeast corner of the City of Niagara 
Falls, approximately \1/4\ mile north of the Niagara River in Niagara 
County, New York.
    EPA will accept comments concerning the deletion of this Site from 
the NPL for thirty days after publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register.

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, EPA, in consultation with the State of New 
York, shall

[[Page 12609]]

consider whether any of the following criteria have been met:

    (i) Responsible 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 response actions 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. 40 CFR 
300.425(e)(1).

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures are being used for the intended deletion 
of the Site:
    (1) EPA Region II issued the following decision documents: a 
Decision memorandum in July 1982; three Records of Decision (RODs) in 
March 1985, September 1987 and September 1988; three Explanations of 
Significant Differences (ESDs) in June 1989, November 1996 and December 
1998; and, a ROD Amendment in May 1991, all of which describe the 
selected remedies at the Site.
    (2) EPA, NYSDEC and the Potentially Responsible Party (PRP) 
designed and constructed the various remedies at the Site. EPA and 
NYSDEC monitored the design and construction activities. EPA prepared a 
Final Closeout Report (available upon request), which describes the 
remedial activities that were implemented and which finds that all 
areas of concern described in the NPL listing and the various decision 
documents have been adequately addressed.
    (3) EPA Region II recommends deletion and has made all relevant 
documents available in the Regional office and local information 
repository.
    (4) The State of New York, through the NYSDEC, has concurred with 
the deletion decision in a letter dated September 30, 2003.
    (5) Concurrent with the publication of this Notice of Intent to 
Delete, a notice has been published in two local newspapers and has 
been distributed to appropriate Federal, State and local officials and 
any other interested parties, announcing a thirty (30)-day public 
comment period on the deletion package.
    The NCP provides that EPA shall not delete a site from the NPL 
until the public has been afforded an opportunity to comment on the 
proposed deletion. EPA Region II will accept and evaluate public 
comments before making a final decision to delete. If a decision is 
made to delete this Site, the decision will be made in a final Notice 
of Deletion in the Federal Register. Deletion of a site from the NPL 
does not affect responsible party liability or impede Agency efforts to 
recover costs associated with response efforts. The NPL is designed 
primarily for informational purposes and to assist Agency management.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

    Between 1942 and 1952, the Hooker Chemicals & Plastics Corporation 
(now Occidental Chemical Corporation (OCC)) disposed of approximately 
22,000 tons of drummed and liquid chemical wastes, including polycyclic 
aromatic hydrocarbons, halogenated organics, pesticides, chlorobenzenes 
and dioxin into the abandoned Love Canal Landfill (LCL).
    Problems with odors and residues in the basements and backyards of 
properties abutting the LCL were first reported in the 1970's. Also, 
during the 1970's, unusually high precipitation in the region caused 
the water table within the LCL to rise, which allowed contaminants to 
spread laterally in surficial soils and along utility bedding, 
eventually seeping into the basements of nearby homes. Dioxin and other 
contaminants also migrated from the LCL to the sanitary and storm 
sewers which extended outside the LCL boundaries, some with outfalls 
into nearby creeks which are tributaries to the Niagara River. In 1978, 
the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) identified more than 
80 chemicals in the LCL and adjacent soils.
    In August 1978, President Carter issued the first of two Emergency 
Declarations at the Site which provided Federal funding for remedial 
work to contain the chemical wastes at the Site and for the relocation 
of the residents in the homes (239 properties) directly adjacent to the 
LCL; these homes were subsequently identified as Ring I and Ring II.
    In May 1980, President Carter issued the second Declaration of 
Emergency at the Site. This emergency declaration established the 
Emergency Declaration Area (EDA), the approximately 350-acre 
neighborhood surrounding the Site, and authorized $20 million of 
Federal funds for the purchase of homes. The Federal Emergency 
Management Agency (FEMA) disbursed these funds and, together with 
NYSDEC, relocated approximately 950 families, of the more than 1,050 
families affected, from a 10-square-block area surrounding the LCL.
    In 1981, EPA proposed the addition of the Site to the NPL, making 
it available for funding under CERCLA. The Site was added to the NPL in 
1983.
    In May 1982, EPA's Office of Research and Development issued the 
Environmental Monitoring at Love Canal Study (May 1982) (EMS) which 
evaluated the nature and extent of contamination throughout the EDA, 
including air, soils, surface water, sediments and biota sampling.
    In July 1982, the EPA Region 2 Regional Administrator issued a 
Decision Memorandum: Cooperative Agreement with the State of New York 
for Love Canal. This memorandum was a precursor to the Superfund ROD 
and documented the work that had been performed by NYSDEC, approved 
additional Federal funding, and identified a phased approach for 
conducting eight additional tasks which included the following:
     Undertake Site containment via an expanded 
leachate collection system and/or other containment option.
     Investigate/remediate contamination in the north 
end storm and sanitary sewer system.
     Investigate/remediate contamination in Black and 
Bergholtz creeks.
     Investigate/remediate contamination in the south 
end storm sewers.
     Investigate/remediate contamination in the 
western sanitary sewers and lift stations.
     Develop long-term monitoring to ensure the 
effectiveness of the cleanup activities.
     Investigate/remediate 102nd Street outfall.
     Prepare summary document with conclusions.
    By June 1983, the Rings I and II homes, adjacent to the LCL, as 
well as the 99th Street School, had been demolished.
    In August 1983, in order to address concerns raised by the Office 
of Technology Assessment and the public regarding the 1982 EMS, EPA 
established the multi-agency Love Canal Technical Review Committee 
(TRC) to act as a management group to provide interagency coordination 
and oversight for further remedial and habitability activities for the 
Site. The TRC was comprised of senior-level representatives from EPA, 
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Centers for Disease 
Control, NYSDOH and NYSDEC. The principal task of the TRC was to 
determine the habitability of the EDA surrounding the Site.
    The efforts of the TRC led to the development of the Love Canal 
Emergency Declaration Area Habitability Study (LCHS). A draft 
Habitability Criteria document was

[[Page 12610]]

developed, pursuant to recommendations of an independent panel, and was 
released for peer review. The final habitability criteria were 
established after this extensive peer review process of the draft 
habitability criteria. The development of the five-volume LCHS was 
based upon the final habitability criteria.
    In October 1983, EPA issued the Environmental Information 
Document--Site Investigations and Remedial Action Alternatives--Love 
Canal which evaluated contamination in the creeks and sewers 
surrounding the LCL and provided treatment alternatives for their 
remediation.
    In 1984, NYSDEC installed a 40-acre cap over the LCL, consisting of 
a high-density polyethylene liner, which was then covered by 18 inches 
of clean soil and seeded for grass. In addition, NYSDEC performed high-
pressure cleaning of the leachate collection system in February 1983 to 
improve its performance. The permanent leachate treatment plant began 
operation in December 1979. Modifications were made to the leachate 
treatment plant in December 1984.
    In March 1985, EPA issued the Love Canal Sewer and Creek Remedial 
Alternative Evaluation and Risk Assessment, which evaluated risks posed 
by contamination in the creeks and sewers, further evaluated 
alternatives for remediating the creeks and presented a proposed 
remedial action plan.
    In May 1985, EPA issued a ROD selecting a remedy to remediate the 
sewers and the creeks in the EDA. This ROD called for:
     Hydraulically cleaning the sewers;
     dredging and hydraulically cleaning the Black 
Creek culverts;
     removing Black and Bergholtz Creek sediments 
with dioxin concentrations exceeding one part per billion (ppb);
     construction of an on-site interim storage 
facility for the creek and sewer sediments; and,
     remediation of the 102nd Street outfall area 
(which was subsequently addressed under the remedial action for the 
102nd Street Landfill Superfund site).
    In August 1985, EPA issued the Long-Term Monitoring Program Design 
for the Love Canal Remedial Project which evaluated contamination in 
the area groundwater and effectiveness of the barrier drain and cap 
system. Hundreds of groundwater monitoring wells were installed between 
1985 and 1987.
    In 1986, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) 
was enacted; Section 312 of SARA included specific provisions to 
address the significant program aspects of the Site. These included:
     Completion of a study of the habitability of the 
EDA, i.e., the LCHS.
     Acquisition of those properties within the EDA 
which were not eligible for government acquisition under the FEMA 
acquisition program.
     Maintenance of property acquired under the FEMA 
and EPA's SARA acquisition programs.
     Provision of technical assistance to the Love 
Canal Area Revitalization Agency (LCARA) to facilitate their efforts to 
revitalize the EDA. LCARA was a New York State Agency that was 
designated as the lead agency in the rehabilitation effort of the Love 
Canal EDA.
    During 1986 and 1987, the remediation of the contaminated sewers 
was performed; this included the clean-out of 68,000 linear feet of 
storm and sanitary sewers. An on-site facility was constructed to 
dewater sewer contaminants. This remedial action conformed with the 
1985 ROD, requiring the removal of dioxin-contaminated sediments from 
the creeks and sewers. Additional sewer cleanup was performed pursuant 
to the 1987 ROD (discussed below); the 1987 ROD also documented earlier 
elements of the sewer cleanup.
    From 1987 until 1989, Black and Bergholtz Creeks were dredged of 
approximately 14,000 cubic yards of sediments. Clean riprap was placed 
in the creek beds, and the banks were replanted with grass. This 
remedial action conformed with the 1985 ROD, requiring the removal of 
dioxin-contaminated sediments from the creeks and sewers.
    In June 1987, EPA issued the Alternatives for Destruction/Disposal 
of Love Canal Creek and Sewer Sediments report which provided various 
alternatives for the ultimate disposal of the sediments, described 
below in more detail.
    In 1987, EPA entered into the first of two cooperative agreements 
with LCARA to implement the mandates of Section 312 of SARA/CERCLA. 
This first agreement dealt with EDA property acquisition. Under EPA's 
and other acquisition programs, including FEMA's, LCARA purchased over 
600 properties in the EDA.
    In October 1987, EPA issued a second ROD selecting a remedy to 
address the destruction and disposal of the dioxin-contaminated 
sediments from the sewers and creeks. The ROD called for:
     construction of an on-site facility to dewater 
the sewer and creek sediments and to contain the dewatered sediments;
     construction of a separate on-site facility to 
treat the dewatered sediments through high temperature thermal 
destruction;
     on-site thermal treatment of the residuals 
stored at the Site from the leachate treatment facility and other 
associated Love Canal waste materials; and,
     on-site disposal of any nonhazardous residuals 
from the thermal treatment or incineration process.
    From 1987 until 1988, the LCHS sampling and evaluation were 
performed to evaluate air and soil contamination in the EDA and other 
comparison neighborhoods, using specific habitability criteria, as 
discussed above. Volume I--Final Report of the LCHS, Introduction and 
Decision-Making Documentation was issued in May 1988. The subsequent 
four volumes of data documentation were issued later. Volumes II and 
III presented the results of the assessment for the Love Canal 
indicator chemicals for air and soil. Volume IV presented the 
assessment of the dioxin soil assessment. Volume V summarizes the 
subsequent peer review of Volumes II-IV and the response to that peer 
review.
    In September 1988, using the results of the LCHS, the New York 
State Commissioner of Health issued a Decision on Habitability, which 
identified appropriate land uses for the seven designated areas of the 
EDA. Areas 1-3 were declared not suitable for residential use, i.e., 
uninhabitable, but were suitable for commercial/industrial use. Areas 
4-7 were deemed habitable, i.e., suitable for residential use.
    In March 1988, EPA issued the 93rd St. School Remedial 
Investigation and Feasibility Study which evaluated the nature and 
extent of contamination at the 93rd St. School and provided 
alternatives for the remediation of the contamination.
    In September 1988, EPA issued a third ROD which selected a remedy 
for contaminated soils at the 93rd Street School. The selected remedy 
included the following actions:
     excavation of approximately 7,500 cubic yards of 
contaminated soil adjacent to the school;
     on-site solidification and stabilization of the 
contaminated soils; and,
     return of the stabilized soils to the excavated 
area.
    Prior to 1989, EPA, through its cooperative agreement with NYSDEC, 
provided funds for the maintenance of the abandoned properties in the 
EDA. Subsequently, in 1989, NYSDEC passed the responsibility for home 
maintenance

[[Page 12611]]

to LCARA. At this time, EPA then entered into a second cooperative 
agreement with LCARA to implement the maintenance and technical 
assistance (MATA) mandates of Section 312 of CERCLA. Under this MATA 
agreement, EPA provided LCARA with funding to maintain improved and 
unimproved properties in the EDA and also to demolish EDA homes that 
had deteriorated to the extent that they presented safety concerns or a 
net loss to the overall value of the property. Over 250 homes were 
demolished under the MATA program.
    EPA's technical assistance has supported LCARA's efforts to 
revitalize the EDA (EPA did not provide Federal funds for the actual 
repair or reconstruction of buildings within the EDA). LCARA sold 
approximately 260 homes in the EDA areas designated for residential use 
and prepared a master plan for the areas designated for commercial/
industrial use.
    In 1989, EPA issued an ESD to the 1985 and 1987 RODs, which 
specified that creek sediments were to be dewatered at creek side, 
placed in polyethylene bags and then transported to and stored at OCC's 
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act-permitted storage buildings at 
its Niagara Falls Main Plant, rather than at the Site, pending high 
temperature thermal destruction at OCC's Niagara Falls Main Plant. In 
addition, other Love Canal wastes, including the sewer sediments and 
other remedial wastes originally targeted for thermal treatment at the 
Site, were also to be thermally treated at OCC's Niagara Falls Main 
Plant rather than at the Site. OCC, the United States and the State of 
New York entered into an agreement, i.e., a partial consent decree, 
filed in U.S. District Court, to implement this modification to the 
1985 and 1987 RODs.
    In May 1991, EPA issued an amendment to the 1988 ROD for the 93rd 
Street School, which modified the selected remedy and called for 
excavation and off-site disposal of the contaminated soils, rather than 
disposal at the 93rd Street School site.
    In September 1992, the contaminated soils at the 93rd Street School 
were excavated; these materials were used for alternate grading 
material for the 102nd Street Landfill Superfund site Remedial Action, 
i.e., subgrade material for the capping remedy.
    In November 1996, EPA issued a second ESD for the 1987 ROD. This 
ESD authorized thermal treatment and/or land disposal of the stored 
Love Canal waste materials at an off-site commercial incinerator and 
landfill rather than at OCC's Niagara Falls Main Plant.
    In February 1998, OCC began shipping the bagged Love Canal wastes 
from its storage facilities for disposal (thermal destruction or 
landfilling).
    In December 1998, EPA issued a third ESD which provided notice that 
EPA granted a treatability variance to OCC to eliminate the requirement 
that the stored Love Canal waste materials containing dioxin at 
concentrations between 1 and 10 ppb be incinerated. As a result of this 
variance, these materials could be disposed at a commercial hazardous 
waste landfill without treatment.
    In August 1999, this remedial action was completed and the 
remaining bags of wastes were shipped off-site for disposal. A total of 
10,262 bags were land disposed in a Subtitle C facility and 5,234 bags 
were incinerated, with the resulting residues being landfilled at 
Subtitle C facilities.
    LCARA completed its charge to revitalize the EDA and, in 2003, was 
subsequently dissolved by an act of the State legislature. At the 
present time, all residential and commercial properties in Areas 4-7 
have been rehabilitated, sold by LCARA and restored to active use. 
LCARA rehabilitated and sold approximately 260 homes in the areas 
identified for residential use and prepared a master plan for the areas 
designated for commercial/industrial use. Certain parcels in EDA Areas 
2-3 remain vacant, and these vacant properties are properly zoned and 
have deed restrictions which comply with the original Decision on 
Habitability, limiting use to commercial/industrial purposes only, 
unless remediated. These parcels were subsequently sold to real estate 
developers.
    EPA, NYSDEC and the PRP used engineering consultants and 
contractors to perform the remedial design and/or construction for the 
Site. EPA and NYSDEC also performed oversight for activities conducted 
by the PRPs and their contractors, as well as EPA and NYSDEC 
contractors.
    In 1982, EPA established a Public Information Office in downtown 
Niagara Falls to handle the Site, as well as other EPA Superfund sites 
in the Niagara Falls and Buffalo, New York area. All decisions made 
about the Site were conducted in a public forum, especially during the 
development of the LCHS, which included the monthly TRC meetings, as 
well as expert panel meetings, which were all open to the public. 
Residents of the EDA were informed of each meeting and were encouraged 
to attend. All associated minutes, reports and other documents 
generated during the more than 70 TRC meetings, as well as each expert 
panel meeting, et al., were made available to the public for review at 
the EPA offices in Niagara Falls. The final TRC meeting was held in 
1991.
    Institutional controls are in place in both the containment area of 
the Site and the EDA. New York State (NYS) has a permanent easement on 
the Site property, providing for the exclusive use and occupancy of the 
Site property. By Consent Decree, NYS granted OCC exclusive use and 
occupancy of the Site property for the purpose of providing continued 
O&M for the Site remedy. OCC retains exclusive use and occupancy, as 
long as the Consent Decree is in effect. The institutional controls on 
the vacant parcels in the non-habitable sections of the EDA (Areas 1-3) 
are maintained by zoning and deed restrictions. The deeds for these 
properties require that NYSDEC be notified both when these properties 
are sold and when these properties are being considered for any other 
use than commercial and/or light industrial. The deeds also state that 
all identified use limitations and restrictions of the property shall 
run with the land and bind the current owner and any successors in 
perpetuity or until such time as NYSDEC shall determine that such 
institutional controls are no longer necessary for the protection of 
public health and the environment. The deed also identifies that some 
soil remediation is required prior to any potential residential use.
    Under the direction of NYSDEC, OCC, through its contractor Miller 
Springs Remediation Management, performs O&M of the Site remedy and 
maintains day-to-day operations at the Site, as identified in two 
separate consent decrees with NYS and the United States, respectively. 
The continued effectiveness of the remedy is monitored, pursuant to 
both consent decrees, as well as through the performance of EPA's five-
year reviews.
    A five-year review of Site remedies was completed on September 30, 
2003. The five-year review ensures that the implemented remedies 
protect human health and the environment and that they function as 
intended by the decision documents.
    EPA, in consultation with the State of New York, through the 
NYSDEC, has determined that all appropriate response actions, under 
CERCLA, have been implemented at the Site and no further response 
actions, other than monitoring, operation, maintenance and compliance 
with institutional controls, are necessary.

[[Page 12612]]

    Hazardous substances remain at the Site above levels that would be 
allowed for unlimited use without restrictions. It is the policy of EPA 
to conduct five-year reviews of pre-SARA remedies which leave hazardous 
substances on-site. EPA completed a five-year review of this Site on 
September 30, 2003. The next five-year review should be completed by 
EPA and/or NYSDEC before September 30, 2008.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

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

    Dated: March 4, 2004.
Kathleen C. Callahan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 04-5875 Filed 3-16-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P