[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 186 (Monday, September 27, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 57649-57651]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-21493]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-7818-1]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Direct final notice of partial deletion of the Centre County 
Kepone Superfund Site from the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region III, is 
publishing a direct final notice of deletion of a portion of the Centre 
County Kepone Superfund Site (the Site), located in State College, 
Pennsylvania, from the National Priorities List (NPL). The deletion 
affects approximately 8 acres, referred to as the ``Administration 
Parcel''.
    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 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, through the 
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP), because no 
manufacturing operations ever occurred on the Administration Parcel and 
it is located upgradient from the contaminated portions of the Site. 
Therefore, remedial action pursuant to CERCLA is not appropriate.

DATES: This direct final deletion will be effective November 26, 2004, 
unless EPA receives adverse comments by October 27, 2004. If 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: David Polish, Community 
Involvement Coordinator, U.S. EPA Region III, Mailcode 3HS43, 1650 Arch 
Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-2029, (215) 814-3327 or 1-800-
553-2509, [email protected].
    Information Repositories: Repositories have been established to 
provide detailed information concerning this decision at the following 
addresses: U.S. EPA Region III Library, U.S. EPA Region III, 1650 Arch 
Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-2029, (215) 814-5000, Monday 
through Friday 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.; Schlow Memorial Library, 118 South 
Fraser Street, State College, PA 16801, (814) 237-6236, Monday through 
Wednesday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday 12 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday 9 a.m. 
to 6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday (during school year) 1:30 
p.m. to 5 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank Klanchar, Project Manager, U.S. 
EPA Region III, Mailcode 3HS22, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania 19103-2029, (215) 814-3218 or 1-800-438-2474, 
[email protected].

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

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III is publishing 
this direct final notice of deletion of a portion of the Centre County 
Kepone Superfund Site (the Site), located in State College, 
Pennsylvania, from the NPL. This deletion pertains to approximately 8 
acres to the north of Struble Road, referred to as the Administration 
Parcel, which includes the current RUTGERS Organics Corporation (ROC) 
Administration Building and associated parking and open areas.
    The Administration Parcel has never been used for manufacturing 
operations and is located upgradient from the contaminated portion of 
the Site. EPA proposes to delete the Administration Parcel because no 
contamination at or above levels that present a significant risk to 
public health, welfare, or the environment has been found at or 
originating from the Administration Parcel. Therefore, response 
activities are not appropriate in this portion of the Site.
    The EPA identifies sites that appear to present a significant risk 
to public health or the environment and

[[Page 57650]]

maintains the NPL as the list of those sites. As described in 
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 direct final deletion will be effective sixty 
(60) days after publication of this document in the Federal Register 
unless EPA receives adverse comments within thirty (30) days after 
publication of 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 the Administration Parcel of the 
Centre County Kepone Superfund Site and demonstrates how it meets the 
deletion criteria. Section V discusses EPA's action to delete the 
Administration Parcel of the Site from the NPL unless adverse comments 
are received during the public comment period.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    Section 40 CFR 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 Substances Superfund 
Response Trust Fund) response under CERCLA has 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 is deleted from the NPL, where hazardous 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 that indicates a need for further action, 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 hazardous ranking system.
    Deletion of a portion of a site from the NPL does not preclude 
eligibility for subsequent Fund-financed actions at the area deleted if 
future site conditions warrant such actions. Section 300.425(e)(3) of 
the NCP provides that Fund-financed actions may be taken at sites that 
have been deleted from the NPL. A partial deletion of a site from the 
NPL does not affect or impede EPA's ability to conduct CERCLA response 
activities at areas not deleted and remaining on the NPL. In addition, 
deletion of a portion of a site from the NPL does not affect the 
liability of responsible parties or impede agency efforts to recover 
costs associated with response efforts.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to the deletion of the 
Administration Parcel at the Site:
    (1) The EPA consulted with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on the 
partial deletion of the Site from the NPL prior to developing this 
direct final notice of partial deletion.
    (2) The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, through the PADEP, concurred 
with this partial deletion.
    (3) Concurrently with the publication of the direct final notice of 
partial deletion, a notice of the availability of the parallel notice 
of intent to delete published today in the ``Proposed Rules'' section 
of the Federal Register is being published 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 delete a portion of 
the Site from the NPL.
    (4) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the 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 withdrawal 
of this direct final notice of deletion before its effective date and 
will 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.
    Deletion of a site or a portion of a site from the NPL does not 
itself create, alter, or revoke any person's rights or obligations. In 
addition, deletion of a site or a portion 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 the 
Administration Parcel of the Site from the NPL and EPA's finding that 
the criteria in 40 CFR 300.425(e) are satisfied.

Background

    The Site is located in College Township, Centre County, 
Pennsylvania, approximately two and one-quarter miles northeast of the 
Borough of State College, near the intersection of State Routes 322 and 
26. The main Site occupies an area of approximately 32 acres consisting 
of the chemical manufacturing area, process buildings, a groundwater 
treatment building, warehouses and storage buildings and an open grassy 
field located south of Struble Road between a portion of the Conrail 
Railroad line and 1st Avenue. The Administration Parcel comprised a 
further area, approximately 8 acres in size, located north of Struble 
Road, where an administration building and associated parking areas are 
located.
    RUTGERS Organics Corporation, (ROC), formerly known as Ruetgers-
Nease Corporation (RNC), has owned and operated a chemical 
manufacturing plant at the main Site. The plant has operated since 1958 
when it was built by Nease Chemical Company, Inc., the previous owner 
of the Site. As a result of an acquisition, ROC has operated the plant 
since December 1977.
    In the immediate vicinity of the Site, the land use is 
predominantly industrial and commercial, with some residential 
dwellings located to the southeast

[[Page 57651]]

across 1st Avenue. Local public water supply is provided throughout the 
surrounding area by the Lemont Water Company.
    The Site was placed on the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) National Priorities List (NPL) 
on September 8, 1983. Pursuant to CERCLA, as amended by the Superfund 
Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), ROC and the United 
States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) entered into an 
Administrative Order of Consent (AOC, EPA Docket No. III-88-22-DC; 
USEPA, 1988) on November 7, 1988. The AOC stipulated that a Remedial 
Investigation (RI) and Feasibility Study (FS) be performed at the Site 
and specific off-Site areas including Thornton Spring and a portion of 
Spring Creek. The RI was conducted from 1990 through 1992 and the RI 
Report (Golder Associates, 1993), which included a Baseline Risk 
Assessment, was conditionally approved by USEPA on March 26, 1993. The 
FS was conducted in 1993 and the FS Report (Golder Associates, 1994) 
was conditionally approved by USEPA on September 27, 1994.
    USEPA issued a Record of Decision for the Site dated April 21, 1995 
(ROD; USEPA, 1995). The 1995 ROD addressed contaminated groundwater, 
surface water, soils, and sediments, together with source control 
measures for surface water discharges. A future ROD will address soils 
from the riparian areas of Spring Creek and the 15-acre former 
sprayfield area, and sediments from the lower portion of the freshwater 
drainage ditch, Thornton Spring, and Spring Creek beyond the Benner 
Fish Hatchery. USEPA amended the 1995 ROD in 2001 with the concurrence 
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (ROD Amendment, USEPA, 2001) to 
select an alternative method of soil remediation at the main Site 
(enhanced soil vapor extraction and soil removal). A Consent Decree, 
whereby ROC agreed to implement the requirements of the OU-1 ROD, as 
amended, was signed by ROC on September 30, 1996 (Civil Action No. 03-
23; USEPA, 1996b). Since 1999, contaminated groundwater extraction and 
treatment, soil and sediment removal, soil vapor extraction, and 
groundwater and surface water monitoring have been conducted at the 
Site pursuant to the ROD and Consent Decree.
    No remedial actions are required by the ROD and Consent Decree for 
the Administration Parcel. There is some ambiguity as to whether the 
Administration Parcel was ever truly part of the NPL Site since no 
manufacturing operations ever occurred thereon and the parcel is 
located upgradient from the remainder of the Site.

Sampling Results

    Extensive sampling has been completed at the Site as part of the 
Remedial Investigation, the subsequent Remedial Design, and monitoring 
of remedial actions. Data collected from monitoring wells located 
within the Administration Parcel, which have been sampled for over ten 
years, indicates no contamination at or above clean-up levels either at 
or originating from the Administration Parcel. Therefore, response 
actions have not been required by the present ROD, nor are anticipated 
to be required by any future ROD for the Site. Therefore, EPA intends 
for this parcel to be officially removed from the NPL pursuant to 40 
CFR 300.425(e).

Community Involvement

    Public participation activities 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 from the NPL, are available to 
the public in the information repositories.

V. Deletion Action

    The EPA, with concurrence of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, has 
determined that all appropriate responses under CERCLA have been 
completed for the Administration Parcel, and that no further response 
actions, under CERCLA, are necessary. Therefore, EPA is deleting the 
Administration Parcel of the Site from the NPL.
    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 direct final deletion will be effective sixty 
(60) days after publication of this document in the Federal Register 
unless EPA receives adverse comments within thirty (30) days after 
publication 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.

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 14, 2004.
Andrew Carlin,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.

0
For the reasons set out in this document, 40 CFR part 300 is amended as 
follows:

PART 300--[AMENDED]

0
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]

0
2. Table 1 of Appendix B to Part 300 is amended by adding a ``P'' in 
the Notes column in the entry for Centre County Kepone, State College 
Borough, Pennsylvania.

[FR Doc. 04-21493 Filed 9-24-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P