[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 23 (Friday, February 4, 2005)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 5930-5932]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2058]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300
[FRL-7868-6]
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan;
National Priorities List
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Direct final rule of deletion of the Southern Maryland Wood
Treating Superfund Site from the National Priorities List.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III is
publishing a direct final rule of deletion of the Southern Maryland
Wood Treating Superfund Site (Site), located in Hollywood (St. Mary's
County), Maryland, from the National Priorities List (NPL).
The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as
amended (CERCLA), is Appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP).
This direct final rule of deletion is being published by EPA with the
concurrence of the State of Maryland, through the Maryland Department
of the Environment (MDE), because EPA has determined that all
appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed and,
therefore, further remedial action pursuant to CERCLA is not
appropriate.
DATES: This direct final rule deletion will be effective April 5, 2005,
unless EPA receives adverse comments by March 7, 2005. If adverse
comments are received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the
direct final rule deletion in the Federal Register informing the public
that the deletion will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Robert Sanchez, Remedial Project
Manager, U.S. EPA Region III (3HS23), 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia,
PA 19103-2029, (215) 814-3451.
Information Repositories: Comprehensive information about the Site
is available for viewing and copying at the Site information
repositories located at: U.S. EPA Region III, Regional Center for
Environmental Information (RCEI), 1650 Arch Street (2nd Floor),
Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029, (215) 814-5254, Monday through Friday, 8
a.m. to 5 p.m.; and in Maryland at the St. Mary's County Library, 23250
Hollywood Road, Leonardtown, MD 20650 (301) 475-2846, Monday through
Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Sanchez, Remedial Project
Manager, U.S. EPA Region III (3HS23), 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia,
PA 19103-2029, (215) 814-3451 or 1-800-553-2509.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Site Deletion
V. Deletion Action
I. Introduction
EPA Region III is publishing this direct final notice of deletion
of the Southern Maryland Wood Treating Superfund Site from the NPL.
The EPA identifies sites that appear to present a significant risk
to public health or the environment and maintains the NPL as the list
of those sites. As described in Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites
deleted from the NPL remain eligible for remedial actions if conditions
at a deleted site warrant such action.
Because EPA considers this action to be noncontroversial and
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication of a notice of
intent to delete. This action will be effective April 5, 2005, unless
EPA receives adverse comments by March 7, 2005, on this document or the
parallel notice of intent to delete published in the ``Proposed Rules''
section of today's Federal Register. If adverse comments are received
within the 30-day public comment period on this notice or the notice of
intent to delete, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of this direct
final notice of deletion before the effective date of the deletion and
the deletion will not take effect. EPA will, as appropriate, prepare a
response to comments and continue with the deletion process on the
basis of the notice of intent to delete and the comments already
received. There will be no additional opportunity to comment.
Section II of this document explains the criteria for deleting
sites from the NPL. Section III discusses procedures that EPA is using
for this action. Section IV discusses the Southern Maryland Wood
Treating Superfund Site and demonstrates how it meets the deletion
criteria. Section V discusses EPA's action to delete the Site from the
NPL unless adverse comments are received during the public comment
period.
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
Section 300.425(e) of the NCP provides that releases may be deleted
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making a
determination to delete a Site from the NPL, EPA shall 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 (Hazardous Substance Superfund
Response Trust Fund) 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.
Even if a site is deleted from the NPL, where hazardous substances,
pollutants, or contaminants remain at the deleted site above levels
that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted exposure, CERCLA section
121(c), 42 U.S.C. 9621(c), requires that a subsequent review of the
site be conducted at least every five years after the initiation of the
remedial action at the deleted site to ensure that the action remains
protective of public health and the environment. If new information
becomes available which indicates a need for further action, EPA may
initiate remedial actions. 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 deletion of the Site:
(1) EPA consulted with the State of Maryland on the deletion of the
Site from the NPL prior to developing this direct final notice of
deletion.
(2) The State of Maryland has concurred with deletion of the Site
from the NPL.
[[Page 5931]]
(3) Concurrently with the publication of this direct final notice
of deletion, a notice of the availability of the parallel notice of
intent to delete published today in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of
the Federal Register is being published in a major local newspaper of
general circulation at or near the Site and is being distributed to
appropriate Federal, State, and local government officials and other
interested parties; the newspaper notice announces the 30-day public
comment period concerning the notice of intent to delete the Site from
the NPL.
(4) EPA placed copies of documents supporting the deletion in the
Site information repositories identified above.
(5) If adverse comments are received within the 30-day public
comment period on this notice or the companion notice of intent to
delete also published in today's Federal Register, EPA will publish a
timely notice of withdrawal of this direct final notice of deletion
before its effective date. EPA will, as appropriate, prepare a response
to comments and continue with the deletion process on the basis of the
notice of intent to delete and the comments already received.
Deletion of a site from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or
revoke any individual's rights or obligations. Deletion 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 future response actions, should
future conditions warrant such actions.
IV. Basis for Site Deletion
The following information provides EPA's rationale for deleting the
Site from the NPL:
Site History and Characteristics
Land and Resource Use
The Southern Maryland Wood Treating Site is approximately 25 acres
in size and is located on a 94-acre parcel of land just west of
Maryland Route 235 approximately one mile north of Hollywood, Maryland.
The upland portion of the Site where most of the remedial work took
place is approximately 25 acres. The remainder of the Site is situated
in or near a flood plain area. Title of the property which constitutes
the Site is being held by a bankruptcy trustee. The Site is bounded by
residential, agricultural and wooded tracts of land. The Site is the
head waters of Old Tom's Run which eventually flows into Breton Bay and
then into the Potomac River.
History of Contamination/Response Actions
The Site was owned and operated by the Southern Maryland Wood
Treating Corporation from 1965 to 1978 as a pressure treatment wood
preservation facility. Creosote and pentachlorophenol (PCP) were used
as wood preservatives by the facility. Six unlined lagoons were used
for disposal of liquid wastes from the process. As a result of such
disposal practices, onsite soils and ground water beneath the lagoons
became contaminated. Non-aqueous phase liquids (NAPLs), both light
(LNAPLs) and dense (DNAPLs), were found in the subsurface beneath the
lagoons and above the underlying clay layer. Additionally, due to
ground water discharge to the onsite pond from the lagoon area, surface
water and sediments in the onsite pond and sediments in Old Tom's Run
(east and west tributaries) became contaminated. Storage of treated
wood onsite resulted in surface soil contamination in the northern
section of the site and northeast tank area.
On March 14, 1985, EPA initiated its first response action, namely
a removal action, at the Site after the discovery of contaminated
material seeping into the onsite freshwater pond. During the removal
action EPA excavated 1,400 cubic yards of contaminated sediments from
the freshwater pond. The sediments were stabilized with cement kiln
dust and encapsulated on the Site, and remained on the Site until a
final treatment. The Site was promulgated on the National Priorities
List on June 10, 1986. In 1988, EPA concluded a Remedial Investigation
(RI) and Feasibility Study (FS) for the Site. Based on the findings of
these studies, EPA issued a Record of Decision on June 29, 1988 (1988
ROD). In the 1988 ROD EPA's selected remedy consisted of the
construction of a subsurface barrier wall around the former lagoon
area, excavation and onsite incineration of contaminated soil and
pumping and treatment of contaminated ground water. Construction of the
substance barrier (sheet pile wall) was completed in November of 1990.
By May 1992, design of the incinerator and the ground water treatment
system were 95% complete. At that point, local citizens and local
government entities expressed opposition to an onsite incinerator. The
design work was suspended and EPA proposed to conduct a Focused
Feasibility Study (FFS) to reevaluate the remedy for the Site.
On June 29, 1993, a second removal action was initiated to address
certain immediate threats at the Site while the FFS was being
conducted. This action included the demolition of several buildings
that were in danger of collapse; the removal and off-site disposal of
liquid and solid waste in numerous tanks and retorts; maintaining the
pile of previously excavated and stabilized sediment; the construction
of an underflow dam to reduce the amount of contaminated material
migrating from the onsite pond into the west tributary stream; the
construction of a trench upgradient of the pond to collect contaminated
ground water, and the construction of a water treatment facility. The
water treatment plant (WTP-1) became fully operational in 1995.
The Focused Feasibility Study (FFS) was completed in February 1995.
Based on the FFS, the EPA issued a second Record of Decision on
September 8, 1995 (1995 ROD). In this 1995 ROD, EPA revised the remedy
selected in the 1988 ROD from incineration to thermal desorption which
the community accepted as the remedy. In addition to excavation of the
upland area, some excavation in the small tributary stream that
receives storm water runoff from the former lagoon area was conducted.
Two large continuous thermal desorption units with vapor recovery
units were constructed on-site and became operational in June 1998.
Soil treatment operations continued until October 6, 2000. At that
point, approximately 270,600 tons of contaminated soils and sediments
had been successfully treated. The Site was re-graded and re-vegetated
with a diverse mixture of wildflowers and grains suitable for wildlife
habitant. Demobilization activities began in October 2000 and continued
until December 2000.
Cleanup Standards
During the excavation and thermal desorption process, but before
backfilling was conducted, all treated soil was sampled to determine if
contaminants had been properly removed from the soils and sediments.
Based on this sampling, EPA determined that all of the treated Site
soils were cleaned to the required performance standards. These
standards were established in the 1995 ROD as Remedial Action
Objectives (``RAOs''). The RAOs set soil clean-up levels of 0.1 ppm
Benzo (a) Pyrene (B(a)P) equivalent for surface soils (within two feet
of the surface) and 1.0 ppm B(a)P equivalent
[[Page 5932]]
for subsurface soils (below two feet from the surface). However, during
the remedial action data showed that in areas where the Site soils were
below the Benzo (a) Pyrene (B(a)P) clean-up levels there were still
high levels of pentachlorophenol (PCP) in the soil. To assure that the
soil in these areas was treated, a non-significant change to the 1995
ROD was issued by EPA on March 5, 1999. This non-significant change
established a cleanup level of 5.0 ppm PCP. In addition, another non-
significant change was the use of treated soils from the Site as
backfill below the water table. These treated soils were required to
meet a clean-up level of 1.7 ppm PCP. This change from the 1995 ROD was
announced during the public meeting on November 7, 1996 and documented
in the ``Site Specific Work Plan,'' dated July 1997.
Post Closure Monitoring
A Post Closure Monitoring Plan, dated November 2000, was prepared
to verify the success of the cleanup. The plan required sampling a
network of monitoring wells throughout the Site including one well at
the center of the former lagoon area. In addition the plan required the
evaluation of the restored uplands and wetlands areas that had
undergone excavation, backfilling, and re-vegetation. The monitoring
wells were sampled quarterly from October 2000 to September 2002.
Samples were analyzed for target compounds such as semi-volatiles,
polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and pentachlorophenol (PCP).
All the sampling results showed that levels for these contaminants were
well below their respective Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs)
established under the Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.
Formal inspections of the wetland and upland areas were conducted
concurrently with the monitoring well sampling effort. These areas
showed no signs of erosion. All disturbed wetland areas have
stabilized. The disturbed uplands areas are currently stabilized with
grass, and the overall upland area is showing 95 percent total
herbaceous coverage. After completion of sampling in September 2002 all
monitoring wells and the 600-foot deep production well were
subsequently closed out in accordance with MDE regulations for well
abandonment. The production well required special close-out procedures
involving blasting. The concern for this very deep well was that ground
water from the upper non-potable aquifer could migrate down to the
lower potable aquifer along possible voids on the outside of the well
sleeve. Complete separation of these two aquifers was assured by
blasting the well sleeve open at a point where there was an impervious
clay layer between the upper and lower aquifers and then pumping in
grout material to seal the well.
Five-Year Review
EPA has completed two Five-Year Reviews for this Site. The first
was completed on September 30, 1994 and the second on September 30,
1999. Since the clean-up was ongoing these reviews were not required by
statute, but were conducted as a matter of policy.
Five-Year Reviews are required at sites where the remedial action
results in hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants remain at
the site above levels that allow for unrestricted use and unrestricted
exposure. The response actions conducted at the Southern Maryland Wood
Treating Site are now complete, and allow for unlimited use and
unrestricted exposure, thus no additional Five-Year Reviews will be
conducted for this Site.
Community Involvement
Public participation activities have been satisfied as required in
CERCLA section 113(k), 42 U.S.C. 9613(k), and CERCLA section 117, 42
U.S.C. 9617. Documents in the Site docket which EPA relied on for
recommendation of the deletion of the Site from the NPL are available
to the public in the information repositories.
V. Deletion Action
EPA, with the concurrence of the State of Maryland, has determined
that all appropriate responses under CERCLA have been completed at the
Site, and that no further response actions are necessary. Therefore,
EPA is deleting the Site from the NPL.
Because EPA considers this action to be noncontroversial and
routine, EPA is taking it without prior publication of a notice of
intent to delete. This action will be effective April 5, 2005, unless
EPA receives adverse comments by March 7, 2005, on this notice or the
parallel notice of intent to delete published in the ``Proposed Rules''
section of today's Federal Register. If adverse comments are received
within the 30-day public comment period, EPA will publish a timely
withdrawal of this direct final notice of deletion before the effective
date of the deletion and it will not take effect and EPA will also
prepare a response to comments and continue with the deletion process
on the basis of the notice of intent to 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 waste, Hazardous substances, Intergovernmental relations,
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water
pollution control, Water supply.
Dated: January 26, 2005.
Richard J. Kampf,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
0
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 40 CFR part 300 is amended as
follows:
PART 300--[AMENDED]
0
1. The authority citation for part 300 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; E.O.
12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp., p. 351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR
2923, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 193.
Appendix B--[Amended]
0
2. Table 1 of Appendix B to Part 300 is amended under Maryland (``MD'')
by removing the site name ``Southern Maryland Wood Treating,
Hollywood.''
[FR Doc. 05-2058 Filed 2-3-05; 8:45 am]
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