[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 7, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34720-34721]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-12154]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Proposed Interim Settlement and Crediting Agreement 
Under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability 
Act

    As of May 25, 2022, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 
(``USFWS''), on behalf of the Department of the Interior, the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (``NOAA''), on behalf of the 
Department of Commerce, (collectively, the ``Trustees''), the 
Department of Justice, and potentially responsible party (``PRP'') BASF 
Corporation (``BASF'') signed a proposed non-judicial Interim 
Settlement and Crediting Agreement concerning early natural resource 
restoration work under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act (``CERCLA''), 42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq., 
for a five-acre property in East Newark, New Jersey. The United States 
contends BASF and other PRPs are liable for natural resource damages 
under Section 107(a) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607(a), concerning the 
Diamond Alkali Superfund Site, including Newark Bay and the upstream 17 
mile stretch of the Passaic River, and the Berry's Creek Study Area, 
Bergen County, New Jersey (collectively ``the Sites''). The proposed 
agreement facilitates early natural resource restoration work, and 
provides for credit for accomplished early restoration work, in advance 
of the

[[Page 34721]]

Trustees' completion of a damage assessment or the filing of legal 
actions against parties liable under CERCLA at the Sites.
    The agreement provides for the completion of natural resource 
restoration work as described below, in return for a $73.5 million 
credit to offset liability for natural resource damages at the Sites. 
The amount of credit is based on the Trustees' estimate of the cost of 
undertaking the work themselves. The agreement specifies that the work 
only partially provides compensation for natural resource damage 
liability at the Sites, and reserves the Trustees' rights for further 
recovery against any PRP, including BASF. The proposed location for the 
restoration work is at the intersection of Clay Street and Passaic 
Avenue in East Newark, New Jersey. The project includes five acres 
adjacent to the Passaic River, and includes the transformation of a 
former manufacturing site of BASF and an adjacent property, into 
restored naturalized flora and fauna with a hydrological connection to 
the River. BASF will undertake the design and construction, provide 
funding for future operation and maintenance, reimburse Trustee 
oversight costs, and impose a conservation easement and restriction on 
the property to protect against future development. The work also 
includes creation of public access to the River.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the proposed agreement. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant 
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and 
should refer to In Re BASF and Trustees Interim Settlement Agreement, 
D.J. Ref. No. 90-11-3-07683/14. 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 proposed agreement may be 
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of 
the proposed agreement upon written request and payment of reproduction 
costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree and Non-
Judicial Settlement Library, U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, 
DC 20044-7611.
    Please enclose a check or money order for $9.50, without appendices 
(25 cents per page reproduction cost), or for $21.25, with appendices, 
payable to the United States Treasury.

Susan M. Akers,
Assistant Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment & 
Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2022-12154 Filed 6-6-22; 8:45 am]
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