[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 119 (Thursday, June 20, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Page 51903]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-13428]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 
the Clean Water Act, and the Washington Model Toxics Control Act and 
Notice of Availability of Draft Restoration Plan/Environmental 
Assessment of Restoration Project Incorporated Into Proposed Consent 
Decree

    On June 13, 2024, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
consent decree with the United States District Court for the Western 
District of Washington in the lawsuit entitled United States of 
America, State of Washington, Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe, Lower Elwha 
Klallam Tribe, Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, Skokomish Indian Tribe, and 
Suquamish Indian Tribe of the Port Madison Reservation v. Pope 
Resources, OPG Properties LLC, and OPG Port Gamble LLC, Civil Action 
No. 3:24-cv-05470, Docket No. 2-1.
    The complaint asserts claims against Pope Resources, a Delaware 
Limited Partnership; OPG Properties LLC; and OPG Port Gamble LLC 
(Defendants) for natural resource damages by the United States on 
behalf of the Department of the Interior, the State of Washington 
through the Washington Department of Ecology, the Jamestown S'Klallam 
Tribe, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, 
the Skokomish Indian Tribe, and the Suquamish Indian Tribe of the Port 
Madison Reservation (collectively, the Trustees), pursuant to section 
107(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. 9607(a); section 311 of the Clean 
Water Act (CWA), 33 U.S.C. 1321; and the Washington Model Toxics 
Control Act (MTCA), RCW 70A.305.
    The proposed consent decree resolves claims alleged against 
Defendants for natural resource damages caused by releases of hazardous 
substances from the former Pope & Talbot sawmill facility, currently 
owned by OPG Port Gamble LLC and previously owned and operated by Pope 
Resources and OPG Properties LLC, to Port Gamble Bay in Kitsap County, 
Washington. The settlement requires Defendants to construct, implement, 
maintain, and monitor a habitat restoration project in Port Gamble Bay 
that involves restoring approximately 20 acres of shoreline and 
intertidal habitat, placing sand cover, and planting eelgrass. The 
settlement also requires Defendants to fund future long-term 
maintenance, monitoring, and stewardship of the project, and pay the 
Trustees' past and estimated future costs for NRD assessment and 
restoration implementation and oversight. The Defendants will receive 
covenants not to sue under the statutes listed in the proposed consent 
decree for specified natural resource damages.
    The Trustees have developed a Draft Restoration Plan and 
Environmental Assessment (``RP/EA'') for the habitat restoration 
project, incorporated into the proposed consent decree. The Draft RP/EA 
proposes to select the habitat restoration project to address injuries 
to natural resources in the Port Gamble Bay.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the proposed consent decree and the Draft RP/EA. Comments on the 
proposed consent decree should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney 
General, Environmental and Natural Resources Division, and should refer 
to United States of America, et al. v. Pope Resources, et al., D.J. 
Ref. No. 90-11-3-11025. 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 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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    Any comments submitted in writing may be filed by the United States 
in whole or in part on the public court docket without notice to the 
commenter.
    During the public comment period, the proposed consent decree may 
be examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. If you require assistance 
accessing the proposed consent decree, you may request assistance by 
email or by mail to the addresses provided above for submitting 
comments.
    The publication of this notice also opens a period for public 
comment on the Draft RP/EA. The Trustees will receive comments relating 
to the Draft RP/EA for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of 
this publication. A copy of the Draft RP/EA is available electronically 
at https://www.fws.gov/media/port-gamble-bay-draft-restoration-plan-and-enviromental-assessment.
    Comments on the draft RP/EA may be submitted electronically to 
[email protected]. Additionally, written comments on the Draft RP/
EA should be addressed to: Jeff Krausmann, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, Washington Fish and Wildlife Office, 1009 College St. SE, 
Suite 215, Lacey, Washington 98503.

Kathryn C. Macdonald,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2024-13428 Filed 6-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P