DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 1 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY:

Q~~~:-41 POLICY

• PROVIDING PUBLIC NOTICE POR CORRECTIVE ACTION

SITES UNDER ALTERNATIVE AUTHORITIES (MTCA)

This policy applies to conducting pUblic notice under

Chapter 70.1050 RCW and WAC 173-340-600 except as

specified for the biennial report in WAC 173-340-340.

Public Notice provides the HWTR Program with an

opportunity to identify site-specific concerns from the

community and other interested groups or individuals,

encourages communication with these groups, and may

provide additional information about the site.

1. Ecology Must Provide Public Notice

The HWTR Program must provide pUblic notice of:

A) Consent Decrees;

B) Agreed orders;

C) Enforcement Orders; .

D) Remedial Investigation and Feasibility

studies;

E) Draft corrective action plans;

F) Routine and interim actions;

G) All major steps in the corrective action

(including completion of the cleanup); and

H) Notices of violation;

Generally, pUblic notice will include issuing a fact

sheet, advertising the comment period in the newspaper

of largest circulation and in the site register, and

possibly holding a pUblic meeting or hearing. See

Public Notice Procedure, PRO 3-41, for explicit

instructions.

2. A Site Mailing List will Be Maintained~

A mailing list will be developed and maintained for

each site requiring pUblic notice. The list shall

include the persons from the potentially affected

vicinity and others, such as:

A) Interested citizens;

B) Interested private and C1V1C groups;

C) Local and state government representatives;

D) Businesses;

E) Environmental groups; and

F) Anyone requesting inclusion on the list.

HWTR 3-41 December 1, 1993
DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 2 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY: _

The potentially affected vicinity shall include all

property adjoining the site and any other area that the 0

department determines to be directly affected by the

proposed action.

3. Public Notice will Be Provided To The Groups Listed:

Public Notice and an opportunity for comment will be

sent to the following groups:

A. Potentially affected vicinity. Be mailed or

delivered to those residing within the

potentially affected vicinity.

B. Persons who have made a timely request. A

request for notice is timely if received

prior to or during the pUblic comment period

for the current phase of remedial action at

the facility. However, the receipt of a

request shall not require the department to

extend the comment period associated with the

notice.

C. Published in the newspaper. Public notice

shall be pUblished in the newspaper of the

largest circulation in the city or county of

the proposed action. Notice may also be

placed in local community papers. One or

more of the following methods shall be used:

display ad; legal notice; or any other

appropriate format, as determined by the

department.

D. Other news media. Distributed to appropriate

News media as the department determines

appropriate. Consideration should be given

to how effective the medium is in reaching

the community surrounding the site.

4. Public Notices Shall Indicate Comment Periods.

All public notices shall indicate the pUblic comment

period on the proposed action. Comment periods will

last for a minimum of 30 days. Comment periods may be

extended if there area large number of documents for

the public to review or if several holidays occur

during the comment period.

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HWTR 3-41 December 1, 1993

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DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 3 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY:------ 5. Ecology May Determine That Additional Notice Is

Necessary.

The site manager and pUblic participation staff may

determine that additional notice is desirable. An

elevated level of public notice should be considered

for such sites as those receiving substantial

pUblic/community attention; sites of interest to those

outside the potentially affected vicinity; and of

regional or state-wide significance.

When selecting additional methods for providing pUblic

notice, consideration should be given to how the medium

compares with the newspaper of largest circulation in

terms of: audience reached; timeliness (frequency of

pUblication); adequacy in conveying the particular

information in the notice; cost; or other relevant

factors.

Additional methods that may be used for providing

pUblic notice are:

A) Press releases;

B) Fact sheets;

C) Public meetings;

D) PUblications;

E) Personal contact by department employees;

F) Posted signs at the facility; and

G) other methods as determined by the department.

6. Extension ot A Public Comment Period.

The site manager and public participation staff may

extend a comment period if they determine that it is

necessary to allow the public additional time to

provide comment. If a comment period is extended, an

additional public notice announcement indicating the

extension must be made. However, Ecology is not

required to extend a comment period based on request of

the pUblic.

7. Public Comment Periods May Be Combined.

Whenever reasonable, the site manager shall consolidate

pUblic notice and opportunities for pUblic comment

under MTCA and RCRA with pUblic notice and comment

requirements under other laws and regulations such as

the state Environmental Policy Act (SEPA).

HWTR 3-41 December 1, 1993
DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 4 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY: _

8. Publio participation Staff Shall Coordinate With Public

Information Staff.

The HWTR Program public participation staff person for

the site shall inform the program's assigned pUblic

information officer (PIO) of any pending public notice

announcement for the media or a press release. The

program pUblic participation staff and PIO shall keep

each other informed of press releases and announcements

regarding the site.

9. Public Participation Staff Shall Provide A Copy Of

Public Notices To BWTR Public Records Coordinator.

Public participation staff shall provide the HWTR

pUblic records coordinator at headquarters with a copy

of all press releases; announcements to the media; site

fact sheets; or other information used to notify the

public of a public notice and comment period concurrent

with the information being released to the public.

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HWTR 3-41 . December 1, 1993

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DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 1 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY: _

POLICY

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PLANS FOR CORRECTIVE ACTION

SITES

This pOlicy applies when developing a pUblic

participation plan under WAC 173-340-600. The purpose

of the public participation plan is to define a

coordinated and effective public participation process

tailored to the public's needs at a particular site.

1. Plans Are Required For Remedial Actions.

Except for emergency actions, a pUblic participation

plan must be developed and implemented for all

corrective actions whether conducted by the agency or

an owner/operator (0/0) through an order or consent

decree.

2. Each Plan Will Be Tailored To The Specific Site.

The scope of the plan will reflect the nature of the

proposed remedial actions, the level of pUblic concern,

and the risks to human health or the environment posed

at the facility.

3. Ecology Must Ensure That A Public Participation Plan Is

Developed For Every Eligible site.

The Ecology HWTR Program will develop, or work with the

0/0 to develop the pUblic participation plan for a

site. The HWTR Program may review and modify a

proposed plan or amended plan developed by the % to--:-

ensure consistency with plan requirements as defined in

WAC 173-340-600.

4. Public Participation Plan will Be Required As Part Of

Any Request For An Order or Consent Decree.

An % will be required to submit a proposed public

participation plan as part of its request for an agreed

order or consent decree. Ecology will advise the 0/0

of the acceptable process and form that a public

participation plan should take. If a plan already

exists for the site, either the existing plan or an

entirely new proposed plan, may be submitted.

HWTR 3-43 December 1, 1993
DATE: December 1, 1993 PAGE: 2 of 4

CANCELS: NEW APPROVED BY:-------

5.

The proposed plan may be revised during the course of

discussions or negotiations on the order or consent

decree. The final plan may become part of the order or

consent decree.

Public participation Plan Contains Four Elements:

The pUblic participation plan will contain four

elements as listed below. The accompanying procedures

contain an attachment which clearly details these

required sections.

A. Define Public Notice Requirements.

The plan shall include applicable MTCA and RCRA

public notice requirements and discuss how these

will be met, including: when public notice will

occur; the length of the comment periods

accompanying each notice; the boundaries of the

potentially affected vicinity and location of

other areas to be provided notice, to the extent

known.

B. Information Repositories.

The plan must identify at least one location in

the community where the pUblic can review

information about the remedial action or

administrative action. The pUblic library should

be considered when practicable. The plan will

also be available for review at the Ecology

office.

C. Public Concerns Will Be Identified and Addressed.

The plan will describe public concerns as related

to the site and the methods designed to address

the pUblic's concerns and methods to convey

information about those concerns to the pUblic.

D. When Possible, Public Participation Requirements

Will Be Coordinated.

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During the development of the plan, care should be

taken to identify any public participation

requirements of other applicable federal, state or

local laws, and describe the means by which these 0

requirements will be coordinated.

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HWTR 3-43 December 1,1993
DATE:

CANCELS:

December 1, 1993

NEW

PAGE: 3 of 4

APPROVED BY:-------

For example, if the state Environmental Policy Act

(SEPA) applies to the proposed action, the plan

should explain how SEPA and this chapter's public

comment periods will be coordinated.

6. Ecology May Require That Additional Elements Be

Included In The Plan.

The HWTR Program will have final authority in reviewing

and approving the content of a pUblic participation

plan. The program may modify proposed portions of the

plan or require that additional elements be included in

the plan as consistent with the regulation.

7. Community Concerns will Be Assessed For Each site.

community interviews or other appropriate methods

should be used to gather information from the local

community or area surrounding a site. This information

will be used to develop a plan that will effectively

address the concerns and interests of the pUblic.

Appropriate methods may include: community interviews;

questionnaires; informal meetings with members of the

community; pUblic meetings; contacts with community

groups or other organizations which have an interest in

the site; establishing citizen advisory groups for

sites; or obtaining advice from the appropriate

regional citizens' advisory committee.

One or more of these methods should be used in

gathering information from citizens, tribal

representatives, community groups, local governments,-~­

pUblic agencies, or other organizations which have an

interest in, or knowledge of, the facility. (A list of

potential contacts is included in the Public

Participation Plan boilerplate, appendix B.)

8. Ecology May Amend An Existing Plan.

Existing plans may be amended. Each pUblic

participation plan shall include a description of the

process for amending an existing plan. For example, a

plan originally developed to address a Corrective

Action remedial investigation/feasibility study may be

amended to address corrective action implementation

phases.

HWTR 3-43 December 1, 1993
DATE: December 1, 1993

CANCELS: NEW

PAGE: 4 of 4

APPROVED BY: <=)

-( A public participation plan shall be reviewed, and the

~,need for changes considered if major changes are made

~~ . to the consent decree, or other significant changes

~;r.~ occur which affect the nature of the site or community.

An existing plan must be updated for the following

reasons:

A. New information is available regarding the scope

of contamination at the site or regarding the

level of risk to human health or the environment;

B. Public concerns have either increased or decreased

significantly; significant changes have been made

to the corrective action plan; or

c. The corrective action is entering a new phase.

All amendments to the plan must be approved by Ecology.

9. Ecology will Ensure Implementation Of The Public

Participation Plan.

The HWTR Program retains approval authority over the

actions taken by the owner/operator to implement the

plan and will take steps necessary to ensure that the

plan is implemented.

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;.. _.. HWTR _ J-4.J----- Becember-l-,-1:"993-- --