[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 57 (Friday, March 26, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16238-16239]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06273]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Filing of Proposed Settlement Agreements Regarding 
Natural Resource Damage Claims at the Western Port Angeles Harbor Site

    On March 22, 2021 the Department of Justice lodged two proposed 
Consent Decrees with the United States District Court for the Western 
District of Washington in the lawsuit entitled United States, on Behalf 
of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United 
States Department of the Interior; State of Washington Through the 
Department of Ecology; Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe; Port Gamble S'Klallam 
Tribe; and the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe,. v. Nippon Paper Industries 
USA CO., LTD, Merrill & Ring Inc., Georgia-Pacific LLC, the Port of 
Port Angeles, Owens Corning, and the City of Port Angeles, Civil Action 
No. 21-cv-5204.
    The proposed Consent Decrees would resolve claims by Plaintiffs, 
who are State, Federal and Tribal Trustees, under Section 107 of the 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 
1980, as amended (``CERCLA''), 42 U.S.C. 9607; Section 311 of the Clean 
Water Act (CWA), 33 U.S.C. 1321; and Section 1002 of the Oil Pollution 
Act of 1990 (OPA), 33 U.S.C. 2702; the Model Toxics Control Act 
(``MTCA''), Wash. Rev. Code Sec.  70A.305.040(2); and Wash. Rev. Code 
Sec.  90.48.142 for natural resource damages at the Western Port 
Angeles Harbor Site.
    In the first Consent Decree with Nippon Paper Industries USA Co., 
Ltd., Merrill & Ring Inc., Georgia-Pacific LLC, Owens Corning, and the 
Port of Port Angeles Defendants are required to pay $8,500,000. In a 
separate Decree, the City of Port Angeles is required to pay $800,000. 
The monies are to be used by the Trustees to address damages at the 
Site and to reimburse Trustees for past assessment costs.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the Settlement Agreement. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant 
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and 
should refer to United States, et al. v. Nippon Paper Industries USA 
CO., LTD, et al. D.J. Ref. No. 90-11-3-10973. All comments must be 
submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date of 
this notice. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:

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         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
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By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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    During the public comment period, the Settlement Agreements may be 
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. Alternatively, a paper copy of 
the Settlement Agreements will be provided upon written request and 
payment of reproduction costs. Please mail your request and payment to: 
Consent Decree Library, U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 
20044-7611.
    For a copy of the Consent Decree with the City, please enclose a 
check or money order for $8.75 (25 cents per page reproduction cost) 
payable to the United States Treasury. For a copy of the Consent Decree 
with Nippon Paper Industries USA CO., LTD, et al., enclose a check or 
money order for $11.50 (25 cents per page reproduction cost) payable to 
the United States Treasury. If you are requesting both agreements, a 
check or money order for $20.25 payable to the United States Treasury 
should be included.
    Finally, please note that the Trustee agencies have released a 
Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan (DARP). The DARP is related to 
the Consent Decree but is a separate document, subject to a separate 
comment process. The Trustees will be holding a public meeting for more 
information. To learn about those Trustees and that process, please 
visit

[[Page 16239]]

https://darrp.noaa.gov/hazardous-waste/western-port-angeles-harbor.

Susan M. Akers,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2021-06273 Filed 3-25-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P