[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 5, 2008)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 6613-6617]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-1964]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[EPA-HQ-SFUND-1983-0002 Notice 4; FRL-8523-7]


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

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Direct final notice of deletion of the Industrial Waste Control 
Superfund Site from the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 is 
publishing a direct final notice of deletion of the Industrial Waste 
Control Superfund Site (Site), located near Fort Smith, Arkansas 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 Arkansas, through the 
Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), because EPA has 
determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been 
completed and, therefore, further remedial action pursuant to CERCLA is 
not appropriate.

DATES: This direct final notice of deletion will be effective April 7, 
2008 unless EPA receives adverse comments by March 6, 2008. 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: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
SFUND-1983-0002 Notice 4, by one of the following methods:
    http://www.regulations.gov: (Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments).
    E-mail: [email protected].
    Fax: 214-665-6660.
    Mail: Donn Walters, Community Involvement, U.S. EPA Region 6 (6SF-
TS), 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX 75202-2733, (214) 665-6483 or 1-800-
533-3508.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-
1983-0002 Notice 4.
    EPA policy is that all comments received will be included in the 
public docket without change and may be made available online at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, 
unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential 
Business Information (CBI) or other information, disclosure of which is 
restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to 
be CBI or otherwise protected. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without 
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will 
automatically be captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you 
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name 
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any 
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA

[[Page 6614]]

cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot 
contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your 
comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, 
any form of encryption and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information 
disclosure of which is restricted by statute. Certain other material, 
such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard 
copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either 
electronically at http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the 
information repositories.
    Information Repositories: Comprehensive information about the Site 
is available for viewing and copying during central standard time at 
the Site information repositories located at: U.S. EPA Region 6, 1445 
Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, (214) 665-6617, by 
appointment only Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 
4 p.m.; Fort Smith Public Library, 3201 Rogers Avenue, Ft. Smith, AR 
72903, (479) 783-0229, Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., 9 
a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. 
Sunday, Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), 5301 
Northshore Drive, North Little Rock, Arkansas 72118, (501) 682-0744, 
Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shawn Ghose M.S., P.E., Remedial 
Project Manager (RPM), U.S. EPA Region 6 (6SF-RA), 1445 Ross Avenue, 
Dallas, TX 75202-2733, (214) 665-6782 or 1-800-533-3508 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    The EPA Region 6 office is publishing this direct final notice of 
deletion of the Industrial Waste Control Superfund Site from the NPL.
    The 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 Sec.  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 noncontroversial and 
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication of a notice of 
intent to delete. This action will be effective April 7, 2008 unless 
EPA receives adverse comments by March 6, 2008 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 notice of deletion before the effective date of the deletion, and 
the deletion will not take effect. The 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 Industrial Waste Control 
Superfund Site, and demonstrates how it meets the deletion criteria. 
Section V discusses EPA actions to delete 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 Site 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) 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 hazard ranking system.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to deletion of the Site:
    (1) The EPA consulted with ADEQ on the deletion of the Site from 
the NPL prior to developing this direct final notice of deletion.
    (2) ADEQ concurred with deletion of the Site from the NPL.
    (3) Concurrent with publication of this direct final notice of 
deletion, a notice of 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 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 notice of 
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 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. 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 Site Deletion

    The following information provides EPA's rationale for deleting 
this Site from the NPL.

[[Page 6615]]

Site Location

    The IWC Site is 8 miles southeast of Ft. Smith, in Sebastian 
County, Arkansas. It is 1 mile west of the town of Jenny Lind and 4.5 
miles east of the town of Bonanza. It can be reached by taking Highway 
71 approximately 8 miles south of Ft. Smith, turning east on Bonanza 
Rd. for about one mile then turning south on the second entrance to 
Racetrack Road. The Site is the eight acre tract of elevated land 
enclosed within a six foot chain link fence at the south end of the 
Racetrack Rd loop less than a mile from Bonanza Rd.

Site History

    The Site is located in a historic coal mining region which dates 
back to the late 1800's. There is an extensive network of abandoned 
underground coal mines north of the Site operated from the 1890s 
through 1932. In the mid-1940's, a surface strip mine was placed in 
operation at the Site to recover coal which was too shallow to mine by 
underground methods. The extent of the final narrow strip mine was 
approximately 40 feet deep and 2,000 feet long. The western half of 
this strip mine was ultimately converted into a commercial industrial 
waste landfill in the late 1960s.
    A full permit to receive industrial waste at the Site was issued by 
the Arkansas Department of Pollution Control and Ecology (currently 
known as the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality or ADEQ) to 
GNJ, Inc. on May 24, 1974. In August of 1974 the Site was sold and 
renamed the Industrial Waste Control Landfill (IWC).
    The IWC operations included the landfill and surface impoundments. 
The facility received waste from industrial plants in and around Ft. 
Smith. The surface impoundments were constructed sometime in the late 
summer or early fall of 1975. They were used to store and evaporate 
liquid wastes received at the Site. Drums were deposited in two 
isolated drum disposal areas.
    In response to ADEQ's directives concerning a surface impoundment 
release the operator stopped accepting liquid solvents in mid-1977. 
Closure activities were initiated shortly thereafter. On August 8, 1978 
the ADEQ was notified that the landfill had been closed and covered 
with compacted material and graded to ensure adequate surface drainage.
    The EPA initiated investigations at the Site in 1980 in response to 
an ADEQ 1979 report of a surface impoundment leachate problem. As a 
result, the IWC site was placed on the NPL on December 30, 1982. The 
Site Remedial Action Master Plan was completed by the EPA on September 
30, 1983. The EPA notified potentially responsible parties (PRPs) who 
organized into the IWC Steering Committee (``the Committee'') in 
November of 1983. The Committee met with the regulatory agencies in 
November of 1983 to discuss voluntary remediation and the following 
studies were undertaken by the EPA and the Committee respectively.

Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS)

    The EPA's Remedial Investigation (RI) report and Endangerment 
Assessment (EA) were completed on March 31, 1986, and its Feasibility 
Study (FS) was completed on June 3, 1986. The EPA authorized the 
Committee under an agreed Administrative Order to conduct an 
independent remedial investigation referred to as the Hydrological and 
Waste Quantification Study (HWQS). The HWQS was conducted from March 
through July 1987. All field investigation activities conducted by the 
Committee were overseen by the EPA, and coordinated through the ADEQ. 
The HWQS report was submitted to the Agencies in October of 1987. A 
Supplemental Feasibility Study and Supplemental Endangerment Assessment 
were prepared by the Committee and submitted to the Agencies in 
February 1988.
    The Endangerment Assessments (EA) were conducted to identify the 
potential risks to public health and the environment. The general EA 
conclusions were that the exposure pathways did not present an 
unacceptable risk; significant concentrations of constituents of 
concern (COC) had not migrated off site; most COC were non-carcinogens; 
and without a transport mechanism COC did not present an unacceptable 
risk to groundwater. The selected response action took these risk 
factors into account.
    The Committee's FS evaluated remedy options and proposed a remedial 
action plan which included removing the surface impoundments and drum 
disposal areas, treating soils with constituents of concern above clean 
up criteria, placement of the treated soils in the surface impoundment 
excavation, controlling migration and infiltration by installing slurry 
wall/french drain system, covering the surface with a full RCRA cap and 
cover, and securing the entire Site within a secure 6 foot chain link 
fence topped with three barb wire strands and controlling access.
    The EPA and the ADEQ determined that the proposed remediation 
alternative met the mandates of Superfund Amendments and 
Reauthorization Act (SARA). A press release and a fact sheet 
summarizing the alternative were distributed to the general local 
population and interested parties on April 19, 1988. A public meeting 
was held with the area residents and local officials on May 9, 1988 at 
the South Sebastian County Courthouse. Written comments and questions 
were received during the comment period which ended June 2, 1988. The 
EPA's Record of Decision (ROD) was signed on June 28, 1988.

Record of Decision

    The Record of Decision (ROD) established remediation objectives. 
The objectives were to remove buried drums in Area C and D and dispose 
of all liquids in an offsite RCRA facility; treat contaminated soils 
above clean up criteria from Areas C, D, and 09B to pass the RCRA 
Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) and solidify the 
treated soil in the Area C excavation; install a french drain to 
intercept and divert shallow groundwater around the Site, and a slurry 
wall to prevent migration of onsite groundwater. Groundwater 
encountered during remediation excavation was to be collected and 
treated to meet effluent limitations or mixed with the stabilized soils 
to meet TCLP limits. Solid and liquid wastes generated during RI were 
to be characterized and treated and disposed on or offsite as 
appropriate. A multi-layered RCRA cap was to be constructed to cover 
the entire site area. A surface drainage ditch was to be constructed on 
the upgradient side of the RCRA cap to divert surface run-on around the 
covered Site. Land use restrictions and a security fence were to be put 
in place to prevent development of the site. Upgradient and 
downgradient groundwater was to be monitored, and the effectiveness of 
the remedy was to be verified every five years.
    The objectives of the ROD were to be implemented in accordance with 
the Remedial Action Plan (RAP), which outlined the general conceptual 
procedures to be followed including preparation of contingency, solid 
and waste management, health and safety, and QA/QC Plans. The RAP was 
prepared to comply with all applicable or relevant and appropriate 
requirements (ARARs) of the Federal, State and local rules and 
regulations.

[[Page 6616]]

Cleanup Standards

    The remedial action objectives were to minimize the potential for 
waste migration, protect human health and the environment, prevent 
future contamination of surface water and groundwater and minimize 
short-term air emissions resulting from remedial activities.

Response Actions

    The following actions were conducted in response to the ROD/RAP to 
minimize the potential risks to the water stored in the mine void 
reservoir:
    Reduce toxicity and volume by excavating soils that exceeded Clean-
up Criteria (1000ppm Total VOC) encountered in Areas B, C, D, 09B, and 
along the Slurry Wall and French Drain pathway and treating the soils 
using chemical fixation and stabilization to meet treatment standards 
based on EPA Toxicity Concentration Leachate Procedure (TCLP). The 
treated soils meeting TCLP standards were placed back into the 
excavation of Area C, solidified with concrete. Area C was then 
contained within a slurry wall keyed into the weathered bedrock and 
Site slurry wall and then capped with a RCRA Cap and Cover. Drums 
removed from Areas C and D that contained liquids were transport to an 
offsite permitted commercial disposal facility.
    Mobility was reduced by removing the leachate transport mechanism 
by installing French Drain upgradient of the Site to intercept shallow 
rain infiltration above the weathered bedrock and divert it around the 
remediated area. A slurry wall was installed downgradient and parallel 
to the French Drain to cutoff backflow from the impacted Site soils 
into the French Drain, and to provide backup for the French Drain. The 
entire remediated area including the Landfill, French Drain, Site 
slurry wall and self contained Area C was covered with a multilayer 
RCRA Cap and Cover to prevent rainfall infiltration into the remediated 
area.
    Long term security for the remediated site is provided by the Cap 
and Cover, site security fence and restricted site access and use. The 
Site is maintained, monitored and inspected regularly in accordance 
with the Post Closure Activity Plan.

Operation and Maintenance (O&M)

    The Post Closure Activity Plan (January 1991) as approved by the 
EPA specified the actions to be carried out once remediation 
construction was completed (3/29/91). The Post Closure Activity Plan 
(PCAP) included: monitor well sampling on a quarterly then semiannual 
basis once baseline action levels were established; site inspections to 
coincide with monitor well sample events; site mowing and erosion 
control maintenance; monitor event reports and Five Year Reports to be 
submitted by the EPA and ADEQ.
    The site monitoring has been conducted in compliance with the PCAP 
as amended, with minor occasional variances duly noted and reported. 
Monitor wells are sampled in accordance with standard EPA protocol. 
Sample results which exceed action limits are resampled to confirm 
conditions. Such occurrences have been infrequent and follow-up 
resample results have returned to below action limits. The Site 
vegetation and erosion control has been maintained. While significant 
site repair has not been necessary, occasional site maintenance has 
included: well repair and Area C evaluation, installation of additional 
downgradient monitor wells, repair of french drain and recharge well, 
regular site mowing, and topsoil replacement.
    The Site is totally enclosed by a 6 foot chain link fence topped 
with three strands of barbed wire. Access is limited to two gates 
secured with a chain and lock to which only authorized agency and PRP 
personnel have keys. Over the course of the Post Closure Care period, 
there have been infrequent and minor instances of site disturbance and 
trespassing.
    Institutional controls (ICs) are a necessary component of 
maintaining the long-term protectiveness of the remedy. ICs are legal 
and administrative measures that prevent exposure to contaminants that 
may remain at a site at concentrations above health-based risk levels. 
They are typically designed to limit activities at or near the Site, 
and include requirements for providing notice (i.e., deed recordation) 
in the real property records for properties where residual 
contamination will remain. For this Site, the ICs include a deed 
recordation with a notice that buried contaminants remain on the 
property, and a prohibition against any reuse, development or other 
activities that might disturb or damage the affected areas without the 
approval of EPA, ADEQ and the property owner. The requirement for 
institutional controls was met through deed recordation in the Official 
Public Records of Real Property in Sebastian County, Arkansas.

Five-Year Review

    The EPA must conduct a statutory five-year review of the remedy no 
less than every five years after the initiation of the remedial action 
pursuant to CERCLA Section 121(c). Based on the five-year reviews, EPA 
will determine whether human health and the environment continue to be 
adequately protected by the implemented remedy. Five-year reviews for 
this Site were completed in February 1997, July 2002, and a revised 
version in September 2007. During the July 2002 five-year review, EPA 
had prepared Deletion document for the Site. However Deletion was put 
on hold as baseline contaminants were exceeded in three monitor wells. 
IWC Settling Defendants (PRPs) conducted a Site Assessment Study (SAS) 
which included statistical analysis, risk assessment and fate and 
transport studies of the contaminants in the offending monitor wells. 
Based on the data from SAS study by the IWC Settling Defendants, EPA 
has concluded that offsite migration of contaminants will not occur. 
Therefore Deletion of the Site from the National Priorities List (NPL) 
is appropriate at this time. The next five-year review will occur no 
later than September 2012.

Community Involvement

    Public participation activities required in CERCLA Section 113(k), 
42 U.S.C. 9613(k), and CERCLA Section 117, 42 U.S.C. 9617, have been 
satisfied, and documents which EPA generated and/or relied on are 
available to the public in these information repositories.

V. Deletion Action

    The EPA, with concurrence of the State of Arkansas, has determined 
that all appropriate responses under CERCLA have been completed, and 
that no further response actions under CERCLA, other than O&M and five-
year reviews, are necessary. Therefore, EPA is deleting the Site from 
the NPL.
    Because EPA considers this action to be noncontroversial and 
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication. This action will 
be effective April 7, 2008 unless EPA receives adverse comments by 
March 6, 2008. 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. The EPA 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. 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,

[[Page 6617]]

Intergovernmental relations, Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Superfund, Water pollution control, Water supply.

    Dated: September 28, 2007.
Richard E. Greene,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 6.

0
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 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 under Arkansas (``AR'') 
by removing the entry for ``Industrial Waste Control.''

[FR Doc. E8-1964 Filed 2-4-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P