[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 137 (Thursday, July 16, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 43191-43193]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-15344]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[EPA-HQ-SFUND-1986-0005; FRL-10011-95-Region 5]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan; 
National Priorities List: Partial Deletion of the Fort Wayne Reduction 
Dump Superfund Site

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; notification of intent.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 is issuing 
a Notice of Intent to Delete Operable Unit 1 (OU1) and Operable Unit 2 
(OU2) (the two capped landfill areas) of the Fort Wayne Reduction Dump 
Superfund Site (Fort Wayne Reduction Site or Site) located in Fort 
Wayne, Indiana, from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests 
public comments on this proposed 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). The EPA and the State of Indiana, through the 
Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), have determined 
that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA, other than 
operation and maintenance, monitoring, and five-year reviews, have been 
completed. However, this deletion does not preclude future actions 
under Superfund.

DATES: Comments must be received by August 17, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
SFUND-1986-0005, by one of the following methods:
     https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot 
be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. EPA may publish 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. 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].
    Written comments submitted by mail are temporarily suspended and no 
hand deliveries will be accepted. We encourage the public to submit 
comments via email or at https://www.regulations.gov.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-
1986-0005. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at 
https://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

[[Page 43192]]

consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through https://www.regulations.gov or email. The https://www.regulations.gov website 
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 email comment directly to EPA without 
going through https://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, 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 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 https://www.regulations.gov index, Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-1986-0005. 
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 hard copy. Publicly 
available docket materials are available electronically at https://www.regulations.gov, Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-1986-0005 and at 
https://www.epa.gov/superfund/fort-wayne-dump or you may contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for 
additional availability information.
    The EPA is temporarily suspending its Docket Center and Regional 
Records Centers for public visitors to reduce the risk of transmitting 
COVID-19. In addition, many site information repositories are closed 
and information in these repositories, including the deletion docket, 
has not been updated with hardcopy or electronic media. For further 
information and updates on EPA Docket Center services, please visit us 
online at https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    The EPA continues to carefully and continuously monitor information 
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), local area 
health departments, and our Federal partners so that we can respond 
rapidly as conditions change regarding COVID-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Cibulskis, NPL Deletion 
Coordinator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5, at (312) 
886-1843 or via email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region 5 announces its intent to delete OU1 and OU2 (the two 
capped landfill areas) of the Fort Wayne Reduction Site from the NPL 
and requests public comment on this proposed action. The Operable Unit 
3 (OU3) (groundwater) portion of the Site will remain on the NPL and is 
not being considered for deletion as part of this action.
    The NPL constitutes Appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the 
NCP. EPA promulgated the NCP pursuant to Section 105 of CERCLA of 1980, 
as amended. 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 OU1 and OU2 of the Fort Wayne Reduction 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, portions of a site deleted from the NPL 
remain eligible for Fund-financed remedial actions if future conditions 
warrant such actions.
    EPA will accept comments on the proposal to delete OU1 and OU2 of 
the Fort Wayne Reduction Site for thirty (30) days after publication of 
this document in the Federal Register.
    Section II of this preamble explains the criteria for deleting 
sites from the NPL. Section III of this preamble discusses the 
procedures that EPA is using for this action. Section IV of this 
preamble discusses where to access and review information that 
demonstrates how the deletion criteria have been met at OU1 and OU2 of 
the Fort Wayne Reduction Site.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    The NCP establishes the criteria that EPA uses to delete sites from 
the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), sites, or portions 
thereof, may be deleted from the NPL where no further response is 
appropriate. In making such a determination pursuant to 40 CFR 
300.425(e), 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, 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. EPA conducts such five-year reviews even if a site is deleted 
from the NPL. 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 without application of the hazard ranking system.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to the deletion of OU1 and OU2 (the 
two capped landfill areas) of the Fort Wayne Reduction Site from the 
NPL:
    (1) EPA consulted with the State of Indiana prior to developing 
this Notice of Intent for Partial Deletion.
    (2) EPA has provided the State thirty (30) working days for review 
of this notice prior to publication of it today.
    (3) In accordance with the criteria discussed above, EPA has 
determined that no further response is appropriate for OU1 and OU2 of 
the Site other than routine operation and maintenance, monitoring, and 
five-year reviews.
    (4) The State of Indiana, through the IDEM, concurred with the 
deletion of OU1 and OU2 of the Fort Wayne Reduction Dump Site from the 
NPL on June 18, 2020.
    (5) Concurrently with the publication of this Notice of Intent for 
Partial Deletion in the Federal Register, an announcement of the 
availability of the Notice of Intent for Partial Deletion is being 
published in a major local newspaper, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. 
The newspaper notice

[[Page 43193]]

announces the 30-day public comment period concerning the Notice of 
Intent for Partial Deletion of the Fort Wayne Reduction Site from the 
NPL.
    (6) EPA placed copies of documents supporting the proposed partial 
deletion in the deletion docket and made these items available for 
public inspection and copying at https://www.regulations.gov, Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-1986-0005 and on the EPA's Fort Wayne Reduction Site 
web page at https://www.epa.gov/superfund/fort-wayne-dump.
    If comments are received within the 30-day public comment period on 
this document, EPA will evaluate and respond appropriately to the 
comments before making a final decision to delete OU1 and OU2 of the 
Fort Wayne Reduction Site from the NPL. If necessary, EPA will prepare 
a Responsiveness Summary to address any significant public comments 
received. After the public comment period, if EPA determines it is 
still appropriate to delete OU1 and OU2 of the Fort Wayne Reduction 
Site from the NPL, the EPA will publish a final Notice of Partial 
Deletion in the Federal Register. Public notices, public submissions, 
and copies of the Responsiveness Summary, if prepared, will be made 
available to interested parties and in the docket listed above.
    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 or a portion 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 EPA placed copies of a Site-Specific Justification for the 
Partial Deletion from the NPL of Operable Units 1 and 2 (Capped 
Landfill Areas), Fort Wayne Reduction Dump Superfund Site and other 
documents supporting the proposed partial deletion in the deletion 
docket. The material provides explanation of EPA's rationale for the 
partial deletion and demonstrates how OU1 and OU2 of the Fort Wayne 
Reduction Site meet the NPL deletion criteria. This information is made 
available for public inspection in the docket at the locations 
identified above.

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.

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.; 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.

    Dated: July 10, 2020.
Kurt Thiede,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2020-15344 Filed 7-15-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P