[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 13 (Thursday, January 22, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4052-4053]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-1147]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Consent Decree Pursuant to the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act
In accordance with Section 122 of the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. 9622, the
Department of Justice gives notice that, on January 6, 2009, a proposed
Consent Decree (the Decree) in United States v. Beckman Coulter, Inc.,
et al., Civil Action No. 98-CV-4812, and New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection, et al. v. American Thermoplastics Corp., et
al., Civil Action No. 98-CV-4781, was lodged with the United States
District Court for the District of New Jersey. The Decree addresses
recovery of response costs incurred or to be incurred and natural
resource damages at the Combe Fill South Landfill Superfund Site (the
Site), located in Washington and Chester Townships in Morris County,
New Jersey. In these consolidated cases, the United States and the New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection brought civil claims
against 31 potentially responsible parties (PRPs) under Section 107 of
CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607, for recovery of response costs at the Site. The
State Plaintiffs also brought civil claims in connection with the Site
under the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act (the Spill
Act), N.J.S.A. 58:10-23 et seq., and other authorities, for response
costs and natural resource damages. Defendants subsequently filed
contribution claims against 382 third-parties.
Under the proposed Decree, Plaintiffs will receive: (1) $61-$69
million (depending on how many Municipal Third-Party Defendants enter
into the
[[Page 4053]]
settlement prior to entry of the Decree by the Court), including $6.4
million from federal departments and agencies, in reimbursement of past
costs, with interest on that entire past costs amount payable from
December 8, 2007 through the date of payment; (2) $3,218,700 for
natural resource damage (NRD) restoration projects; and (3) an annuity
paying $27 million over thirty years for cleanup and operation and
maintenance (O&M) costs to be incurred at the Site in connection with
the remedy. In addition, Plaintiffs will recover the net proceeds of
contribution actions against non-settling parties.
There have been two prior settlements in these cases. In 2003, in
two de minimis consent decrees, Plaintiffs resolved the liability of 58
de minimis parties for response costs for $3.26 million and resolved
the liability of a subset of those parties for NRD for $302,000.
Subsequently, in 2005, Plaintiffs entered into an ability-to-pay
settlement with former Site owners and transporters for $13,047,121.50.
This Decree does not select the remedy or determine future uses at
the Site. Rather, the settlement provides, in part, continued funding
for the remedy selected in the 1986 Site Record of Decision. The Decree
also provides settling parties a Covenant Not to Sue by the Plaintiffs
pursuant to CERCLA and Section 7003 of the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 U.S.C. 9673, for all costs and remedial
activities at the Site. The State Plaintiffs similarly provide a
Covenant Not to Sue pursuant to the Spill Act and other authorities. In
the event new information or conditions are discovered, the Covenants
are subject to a reopener against parties specified in the Decree
believed to have sent higher volumes of waste to the Site.
The Department of Justice will receive, for a period of thirty (30)
days from the date of this publication, comments relating to the
proposed Consent Decree. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and
either e-mailed to [email protected] or mailed to United
States Department of Justice, Post Office Box 7611, Washington, DC
20044-7611, and should refer to United States v. Beckman Coulter, Inc.,
et al., Civil Action No. 98-CV-4812, and DOJ Reference No. 90-11-2-
1134/1. Commenters may request an opportunity for a public meeting in
the affected area, in accordance with Section 7003(d) of RCRA, 42
U.S.C. 6973(d). The proposed Decree may be examined at: (1) The Office
of the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, 970 Broad
Street-Room 700, Newark, New Jersey 07102 (973-645-2700); and (2) the
United States Environmental Protection Agency-Region II, 290 Broadway-
17th Floor, New York, New York 10007 (contact: William C. Tucker,
Assistant Regional Counsel, 212-637-3139).
During the public comment period, the proposed Decree may also be
examined at the Department of Justice Web site, http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html. A copy of the proposed Decree may also be
obtained by mail from the Consent Decree Library, United States
Department of Justice, Post Office Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611
or by faxing or e-mailing a request to Tonia Fleetwood
([email protected]) (fax 202-514-0097, phone confirmation 202-
514-1547). In requesting a copy from the Consent Decree Library, please
refer to the referenced case and DOJ Reference Number and enclose a
check for $59.25 for the Decree (237 pages including Appendices, at 25
cents per page reproduction costs), made payable to the United States
Treasury or, if by e-mail or fax, forward a check in that amount to the
Consent Decree Library at the stated address.
Ronald G. Gluck,
Assistant Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment and
Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. E9-1147 Filed 1-21-09; 8:45 am]
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