[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 145 (Monday, July 29, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 36474-36478]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-15858]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[EPA-HQ-SFUND-1992-0007; FRL-9997-23-Region 7]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan; 
National Priorities List: Partial Deletion of the Cleburn Street Well 
Superfund Site

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 is 
publishing a direct final Notice of Partial Deletion of the Cleburn 
Street Well Superfund Site (Site), located in Grand Island, Nebraska, 
from the National Priorities List (NPL) for of the Operable Unit (OU) 1 
and OU4. This partial deletion pertains to OU1--Contaminated sub-
surface soil at former One-Hour Martinizing (OHM) and OU4--Soil and 
Groundwater at Ideal Cleaners. The remaining OU2, OU3, and OU5 will 
remain on the NPL and are not being considered for deletion as part of 
this action. The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act 
(CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and 
Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). This direct 
final partial deletion is being published by EPA with the concurrence 
of the State of Nebraska, through the Nebraska Department of 
Environmental Quality (NDEQ); because EPA has determined that all 
appropriate response actions at these identified parcels under CERCLA 
have been completed. However, this partial deletion does not preclude 
future actions under Superfund, including Five Year Reviews.

DATES: This direct final partial deletion is effective September 27, 
2019 unless EPA receives adverse comments by August 28, 2019. If 
adverse comments are received, the EPA will publish a timely withdrawal 
of the direct final partial deletion in the Federal Register informing 
the public that the partial deletion will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID no. EPA-HQ-
SFUND-1992-0007, by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot 
be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish

[[Page 36475]]

any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically 
any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information 
(CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 
Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a 
written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment 
and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA 
will generally not consider comments or comment contents located 
outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other 
file sharing system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA 
public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, 
and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
     Email: [email protected] or 
[email protected].
     Mail: Environmental Protection Agency Region 7, 11201 
Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, KS 66219. Attention: David Wennerstrom, SEMD 
Divison or Pam Houston, ECO Office.
     Hand delivery: Environmental Protection Agency Region 7, 
11201 Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, KS 66219. Such deliveries are only 
accepted between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays. Special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID no. EPA-HQ-SFUND-
1992-0007. The EPA's 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 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information 
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or email. The http://www.regulations.gov website is 
an ``anonymous access'' system, which means the EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you send an email comment directly to EPA without 
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your email address will be 
automatically 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, the 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 the EPA 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 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in the hard 
copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either 
electronically in http://www.regulations.gov, online at: https://www.epa.gov/superfund/cleburnstreetwell, or in hardcopy at EPA Region 7 
Records Center, 11201 Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, KS 66219 between 8 a.m. 
to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Wennerstrom, Remedial Project 
Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7, 11201 Renner 
Blvd., Lenexa, KS 66219, (913) 551-7996, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region 7 is publishing this direct final Notice of Partial 
Deletion for the Cleburn Street Well Superfund Site, (Site), from the 
National Priorities List (NPL). This partial deletion pertains to the 
soil and subsurface soil at the One-Hour Martinizing facility (OHM) 
(OU1) and the soil and groundwater at Ideal Cleaners (OU4). The NPL 
constitutes appendix B of 40 CFR part 300 which is the National Oil and 
Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), which the EPA 
promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended. 
The EPA maintains the NPL as the list of sites that appear to present a 
significant risk to public health, welfare, or the environment. Sites 
on the NPL may be the subject of remedial actions financed by the 
Hazardous Substance Superfund (Fund). This partial deletion of the 
Cleburn Street Well Superfund Site is proposed in accordance with 40 
CFR 300.425(e) and is consistent with the Notice of Policy Change: 
Partial Deletion of Sites Listed on the National Priorities List. 60 FR 
55466 (November 1, 1995). As described in 40 CFR 300.425(e)(3) of the 
NCP, a portion of a site deleted from the NPL remains eligible for 
Fund-financed remedial action if future conditions warrant such 
actions.
    Section II of this document explains the criteria for deleting 
sites from the NPL. Section III discusses procedures that the EPA is 
using for this action. Section IV discusses OU1 and OU4 of the Cleburn 
Street Well Superfund Site and demonstrates how it meets the deletion 
criteria. Section V discusses EPA's action to partially delete the Site 
media and/or parcels from the NPL unless adverse comments are received 
during the public comment period.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    The NCP establishes the criteria that the EPA 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 such a determination pursuant to 40 CFR 300.425(e), the EPA will 
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 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.
    Pursuant to CERCLA section 121(c) and the NCP, the EPA conducts 
five-year reviews to ensure the continued protectiveness of remedial 
actions where hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants remain 
at a site above levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted 
exposure. The EPA conducts such five-year reviews even if a site is 
deleted from the NPL. The EPA may initiate further action to ensure 
continued protectiveness at a deleted site if new information becomes 
available that indicates it is appropriate. Whenever there is a 
significant release from a site deleted from the NPL, the deleted site 
may be restored to the NPL

[[Page 36476]]

without application of the hazard ranking system.

III. Partial Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to the deletion of OU1 and OU4 of 
the Site:
    (1) The EPA has consulted with the State of Nebraska prior to 
developing this direct final Notice of Partial Deletion and the Notice 
of Intent for Partial Deletion published in the ``Proposed Rules'' 
section of this issue of the Federal Register.
    (2) The EPA has provided the State 30 working days for review of 
this document and the parallel Notice of Intent for Partial Deletion 
prior to their publication in this issue of the Federal Register, and 
the State, through the NDEQ, has concurred on 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 the availability of the parallel 
Notice of Intent for Partial Deletion is being published in a major 
local newspaper, The Grand Island Independent. The newspaper notice 
announces the 30-day public comment period concerning the Notice of 
Intent for Partial Deletion of the Site from the NPL.
    (4) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the partial 
deletion in the deletion docket and made these items available for 
public inspection and copying at the Site information repositories 
identified above.
    (5) If adverse comments are received within the 30-day public 
comment period on this partial deletion action, the 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 the deletion process on the basis of the 
Notice of Intent for Partial Deletion and the comments already 
received.
    Deletion of a portion of a site from the NPL does not itself 
create, alter, or revoke any individual's rights or obligations. 
Deletion of 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 further 
response actions, should future conditions warrant such actions.

IV. Basis for Partial Site Deletion

    The following information provides the EPA's rationale for deleting 
OU1 and OU4 of the Cleburn Street Well Superfund Site from the NPL:

Site Background, Location, and History

    The Cleburn Street Well Superfund Site (CERCLIS ID #NED981499312) 
is located within the urban setting of Grand Island, Nebraska. Grand 
Island's 2016 census reports a population of 51,517. The Site is 
situated in central Nebraska, approximately two miles north of the Wood 
River and approximately seven miles northeast of the Platte River. The 
Site encompasses a portion of the downtown area and is surrounded by a 
variety of light industries, commercial businesses and residential 
dwellings. Surface runoff is controlled by man-made features typically 
present in a city (storm sewers/gutters) and is eventually discharged 
into the Wood River.
    The Cleburn Street Well Site consists of four distinct volatile 
organic compound (VOC) release areas located within the central portion 
of the City of Grand Island, Nebraska. Three of the source areas are 
locations of commercial dry-cleaning businesses: Former One-Hour 
Martinizing (OHM) (OUs 1 and 2), Ideal Cleaners (OU3), and former 
Liberty Cleaners (OU4). Ideal Cleaners is currently an operating 
business. The fourth release area is the location of the former 
Nebraska Solvent Distribution Company (OU5).
    OU1 (former OHM) is located on a property which includes a 
structure with concrete slab on grade construction. The former OHM dry 
cleaner building is currently being used temporarily as commercial 
building space for a construction business. A used tire shop operates 
in an adjacent building. The immediate vicinity of the former OHM 
predominantly consists of commercial businesses; however, residential 
properties are also present.
    OU4 (Liberty Cleaners) is an operating business located in a 
predominantly residential area.
    Contamination at the Cleburn Street Well Site was first discovered 
in March 1986 when the Nebraska Department of Health detected 
tetrachloroethene (PCE) at the Cleburn Street public drinking water 
supply well. The EPA became involved in 1987 and conducted a 
preliminary assessment with subsequent site investigations resulting in 
the identification of four separate source areas: Three dry cleaning 
facilities--OHM, Liberty Cleaners, and Ideal Cleaners; and a former 
solvent distribution company (Nebraska Solvent Company). These source 
areas are all within an approximate 1,960 feet radius of the Cleburn 
Street well, which is located near the intersection of Cleburn Street 
and North Front Street.
    The EPA follow-on investigations identified significant PCE and 
trichloroethene (TCE) contamination OU1 and OU4 locations. The release 
of hazardous substances resulted in the contamination above maximum 
contaminant levels (MCLs), of the aquifer providing potable water to 
the city of Grand Island. The MCL of both TCE and PCE is 5 parts per 
billion, as defined by the 1976 Safe Water Drinking Act. This 
necessitated the abandonment of the Cleburn Street public water supply 
well and subsequently the abandonment of both the Lincoln and Pine 
Street public supply wells, also located in the area.
    The State of Nebraska has designated the aquifer impacted by the 
Cleburn Site as a Class GA Groundwater Supply. Class GA Groundwater is 
a groundwater supply which is currently being used as a public drinking 
water supply or is proposed to be used as a public drinking water 
supply. The contamination detected caused the State of Nebraska to 
designate the Site as a Remedial Action Class 1, requiring the ``most 
extensive remedial action measures'' to clean up and restore the 
groundwater to drinking water quality suitable for all beneficial uses.

Remedial Investigation and Human Health Assessments

    The Site was proposed for the National Priorities List, or NPL, on 
July 29, 1991 (56 FR 21460) and listed as final on the NPL on October 
14, 1992 (57 FR 47180). The remedial investigation was completed in May 
1993 and the Feasibility Study was completed in July 1995.
    The human health risk assessment completed in 1993 evaluated risk 
at OU1 and OU4. Current groundwater exposures are not likely because 
city residents have access to city water and are not known to be using 
private wells; and soil contamination is below ground and not 
accessible for direct contact exposures. Although residents are not 
believed to be currently exposed to contamination, the risk assessment 
evaluated several potential future exposure pathways. Future residents 
could be exposed to contaminated groundwater via ingestion, inhalation, 
and direct contact if private wells are installed and used in place of 
city water; and future development could also result in direct contact, 
ingestion, and inhalation exposures to contaminated soils.
    The 1993 human health risk assessment determined that the 
carcinogenic risk associated with

[[Page 36477]]

exposure to soil at the OU1 and OU4 source was low with an estimated 
excess cancer risk of 2x10-7.
    A screening level ecological risk assessment was performed in 1998. 
It was determined that there were no ecological exposure pathways.

Remedial Action Objectives

    The EPA composed the 1996 Record of Decision (ROD) to address soil 
and groundwater contamination at all three dry cleaner locations. 
Remedy selection was based on the following 1996 ROD Remedial Action 
Objectives, or RAOs:
    The RAO for groundwater at OU4, defined in the 1996 ROD, is 
restoration of the shallow aquifer to its designated use as a drinking 
water source.
    The general RAO for groundwater which provides for the protection 
of human health includes the prevention or minimization of ingestion of 
groundwater having a carcinogenic risk greater than 1x10-6 
and/or a HI for noncarcinogens greater than 1. The specific remediation 
goals which would achieve this objective are the MCLs for PCE 
contamination. The RAO for groundwater which is protective of the 
environment involves the restoration of groundwater quality to below 
MCLs for all contaminants which have MCLs. The primary contamination of 
concern is PCE.
    The following RAO for OU1 and OU4 soils is defined in the 1996 ROD:
    The RAO for soil which is protective of human health includes the 
prevention or minimization of direct contact with soils having a 
carcinogenic risk greater than 1 x 10-6, and/or an HI for 
noncarcinogens greater than 1. The specific remediation goals which 
would achieve this objective have not been established. However, the 
agency's soil screening levels for PCE will be used as a guideline to 
determine the level of protectiveness achieved by the remedial action. 
The soil RAO also includes the prevention of migration of PCE 
contaminant from soil that would result in groundwater contamination in 
excess of the MCL with a site-specific cleanup level of 0.89 mg/kg.

Selected Remedy, Operations, and Results

    Per the 1996 ROD, the following are the selected remedies for OU1 
and OU4.
    The selected remedies for OU1 (Soils at OHM) are:

--Institutional controls to restrict groundwater use and prevent 
exposures
--Extraction of subsurface contaminants using soil vapor extraction 
(SVE)
--Treatment of extracted vapors by carbon absorption

    The selected remedies for OU4 (Ideal Cleaners) are:

--Natural attenuation and groundwater monitoring for ten years
--Institutional controls to restrict groundwater use and prevent 
exposures
--Contingency action of in situ treatment of source soil by SVE*

    * The SVE system was not warranted or needed to achieve the clean-
up goal at OU4, and the SVE contingency remedy ws not imlemented.
OU1
    The remedial design for OU1 actions selected in the 1996 ROD were 
completed in September 1997, and the remedies were constructed and 
operating by October 1998. Following the first year of operation, on 
October 29, 1999, a joint inspection was conducted by the EPA and the 
NDEQ, and the remedies were determined to be operational and 
functional.
    The OU1 SVE system was operated by NDEQ for a period of 
approximately four years between 1998 and 2002, and for an additional 
year from April 2005 through early 2006. In April 2006, NDEQ notified 
the EPA of its position that the OU1 remedy was complete because soil 
vapor concentrations had reached asymptotic levels and no further mass 
removal was being achieved by the SVE system. As a part of the 2007 
Source Investigation for OU2, Groundwater at former One-Hour 
Martinizing, soil samples were collected from seven locations from 
within the footprint of the building in the vadose zone, less than 24 
feet below ground surface. All soil samples exhibited PCE 
concentrations less than the site-specific cleanup level of 0.89 mg/kg. 
In a letter dated February 22, 2007, the EPA agreed with NDEQ that the 
OU1 remedy had achieved its intended purpose of addressing source 
soils. The 2012 ROD Amendment, which selected in-situ thermal remedial 
action for OU2, also summarized the soil clean-up at OU1, ``The 
remediation goals for COC's detected in the shallow subsurface soils 
have been achieved by operation of the SVE system at the facility.''
OU4
    The Remedial Design for OU4 was completed in June 1997. The 
remedial action for the natural attenuation remedy with monitoring 
included the installation of two downgradient monitoring wells and six 
quarterly monitoring events. The final RA Report for OU4 was approved 
on July 14, 1999. The remedy for OU4 was turned over to the State for 
O&M on September 10, 1999. Since 1999, NDEQ has sampled the monitoring 
wells at regular intervals. Nine of the last 11 groundwater sampling 
events for all OU4 wells have been non-detect and all groundwater 
monitoring wells have been under the MCL since the year 2001. After 
2012, NDEQ management, with EPA concurrence, made the decision not to 
sample OU4 wells henceforth as there is no evidence of residual 
contamination.

Institutional Controls

    Institutional controls at the Cleburn Well Superfund Site were 
implemented in February 1988 when the city of Grand Island passed 
Ordinance No. 8363, which restricts the use of groundwater pumped from 
within the Site and requires registration of new wells and adherence to 
permitting requirements within the Site.

Five-Year Review

    Statutory five-year reviews are required at the Cleburn Street Well 
Superfund Site since hazardous substances remain at the Site above 
levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure. Five-
year reviews were completed for the Site in 2003, 2008, 2013, and 2018. 
For both OU1 and OU4, the remedy is protective of human health and the 
environment. There are no issues or recommendations for either OU1 or 
OU4. The next five-year review is scheduled for 2023.

Community Involvement

    Throughout the process from development of the remedy to completion 
of the remedial activities, all phases of the Site remediation have 
been an extensive community involvement process with input from Federal 
and State regulators, the City of Grand Island, and members of the 
public. Over the life of the project, there were public comment periods 
and public meetings to ensure that the local residents were able to 
contribute to the process and express their opinions.
    Public involvement has been included throughout the remediation 
process at this Site and has been memorialized in site documents 
including the Record of Decision, Proposed Plans, and EPA Five-Year 
Reviews. Public comments are also solicited during this partial 
deletion with a notice in the local newspaper, the Grand Island 
Independent.

Determination That the Criteria for Deletion Have Been Met

    In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), EPA Region 7 detemined the 
response at OU1 and OU4 of the Site

[[Page 36478]]

(the subject of this deletion) meet the substantive criteria for 
deletion from the NPL. The EPA has consulted with and has the 
concurrence of the State of Nebraska. All responsible parties or other 
persons have implemented all appropriate response actions required. All 
appropriate Fund-financed response under CERCLA was implemented, and no 
further response action by responsible parties is appropriate.
    The implemented remedies at OU1 and OU4 have achieved the degree of 
cleanup specified in the remedy decisions for all pathways of exposure. 
All selected remedial action objectives and associated cleanup levels 
are consistent with agency policy and guidance. No further Superfund 
response is needed to protect human health and the environment.

V. Partial Deletion Action

    The EPA, with concurrence of the State of Nebraksa through the 
NDEQ, has determined that all appropriate response actions under 
CERCLA, have been completed. Therefore, the EPA is deleting OU1 and OU4 
from the Cleburn Street Well Superfund Site from the NPL.
    Because the EPA considers this action to be noncontroversial and 
routine, the EPA is taking it without prior publication. This action 
will be effective September 27, 2019 unless EPA receives adverse 
comments by August 28, 2019. If adverse comments are received within 
the 30-day public comment period, the EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal of this direct final Notice of Partial Deletion before the 
effective date of the partial 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 partially 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 substances, Hazardous waste, Intergovernmental relations, 
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water 
pollution control, Water supply.

    Dated: July 17, 2019.
David Cozad,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 7.

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

PART 300--NATIONAL OIL AND HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES POLLUTION 
CONTINGENCY PLAN

0
1. The authority citation for part 300 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(d); 42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; E.O. 13626, 
77 FR 56749, 3 CFR, 2013 Comp., p. 306; E.O. 12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 
CFR, 1991 Comp., p. 351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR 2923, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., 
p. 193.


0
2. Table 1 of appendix B to part 300 is amended by revising the listing 
under Nebraska for ``Cleburn Street Well'' to read as follows:

Appendix B to Part 300--National Priorities List

                   Table 1--General Superfund Section
------------------------------------------------------------------------
     State            Site name          City/county         Notes(a)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                              * * * * * * *
NE.............  Cleburn Street      Grand Island......               P
                  Well.
 
                              * * * * * * *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(a) A = Based on issuance of health advisory by Agency for Toxic
  Substances and Disease Registry (if scored, HRS score need not be
  greater than or equal to 28.50).
 * * * * * * *
P = Sites with partial deletion(s).

* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2019-15858 Filed 7-26-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P