[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 19, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 2903-2905]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-1089]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-6525-3]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan 
National Priorities List

AGENCY:  Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION:  Direct final deletion of the Renora, Inc., Superfund Site from 
the National Priorities List.

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SUMMARY:  The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
Region II Office announces the deletion of the Renora, Inc., Site from 
the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this 
action. The NPL constitutes appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the 
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 
which EPA promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 
(CERCLA), as amended. EPA and the New Jersey Department of 
Environmental Protection (NJDEP) have determined that all appropriate 
response actions under CERCLA have been implemented at the Site to 
protect human health and the environment.

DATES:  This ``direct final'' action will be effective March 20, 2000 
unless EPA receives significant adverse or critical comments by 
February 18, 2000. If written significant adverse or critical comments 
are received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the rule in the 
Federal Register, informing the public that the rule will not take 
effect.

ADDRESSES:  Comments may be mailed to: Grisell Diaz-Cotto, Remedial 
Project Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region II, 290 
Broadway-19th Floor, New York, NY 10007-1866.
    Comprehensive information on this Site is available for viewing at 
the Renora, Inc., Site information repositories at the following 
locations:
Edison Township Public Library, 340 Plainfield Avenue, Edison, New 
Jersey 08817, (732) 287-2298;
      and
U.S. EPA Records Center, 290 Broadway--18th Floor, New York, New York 
10007-1866, Hours: 9:00 am to 5:00 pm--Monday through Friday, Contact: 
Superfund Records Center (212) 637-4308.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Grisell Diaz-Cotto, Remedial Project 
Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region II, 290 
Broadway--19th Floor, New York, New York 10007-1866, (212) 637-4430.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:   

Table of Contents

I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion
V. Action

I. Introduction

    The United States Environmental Protection Agency Region II 
announces the deletion of the Renora, Inc., Site (the ``Site''), which 
is located in Edison Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey, from the 
National Priorities List (NPL), which constitutes appendix B of the 
National Oil and Hazardous Substance Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 
40 CFR part 300, and requests comments on this deletion. EPA identifies 
sites that appear to present a significant risk to public health, 
welfare, or the environment and maintains the NPL as the list of these 
sites. Pursuant to 40 CFR 300.425(e) of the NCP, any site or portion of 
a site deleted from the National Priorities List remains eligible for 
Fund-financed remedial actions if future conditions at the site warrant 
such action.
    EPA will accept comments, concerning this document, for thirty days 
after publication of this document in the Federal Register.
    Section II of this document explains the criteria for deleting 
sites from the NPL. Section III discusses the procedures that EPA is 
using for this action. Section IV discusses the Renora, Inc., Site and 
explains how the Site meets the deletion criteria.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    As described in Sec. 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites may be deleted 
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making a 
determination to delete a site from the NPL, EPA, in consultation with 
the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), shall 
consider 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 responses under CERCLA have 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, taking of remedial measures is not appropriate.

    Deletion of a site from the NPL does not preclude eligibility for 
subsequent Fund-financed actions at the Site if

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future Site conditions warrant such actions. Section 300.425(e)(3) of 
the NCP provides that Fund-financed actions may be taken at sites that 
have been deleted from the NPL. Further, deletion of a site from the 
NPL does not affect the liability of responsible parties or impede 
Agency efforts to recover costs associated with response efforts.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures were used for the intended deletion of 
this Site: (1) EPA Region II issued a Record of Decision (ROD) on 
September 28, 1987, and a ROD Amendment on September 30, 1994, which 
identified the appropriate remedial actions to be undertaken at the 
Site; (2) Potentially responsible parties completed all remedial 
actions; (3) EPA Region 2 determined in a Site Close-Out Report dated 
September 30, 1996, that all construction activities were completed; 
(4) The NJDEP concurred with the proposed deletion in a letter dated 
July 8, 1998; (5) A notice has been published in the local newspaper 
and has been distributed to appropriate federal, state and local 
officials and other interested parties announcing a 30-day dissenting 
public comment period on EPA's Direct Final action to delete; and (6) 
EPA Region II recommends deletion and has made all relevant documents 
available for public review in the local Site information repositories.
    EPA is requesting only dissenting comments on the Direct Final 
action to delete. The NCP provides that EPA shall not delete a site 
from the NPL until the public has been afforded an opportunity to 
comment on the proposed deletion.
    Deletion of sites from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or 
revoke any individual's rights or obligations. The NPL is designed 
primarily for informational purposes and to assist Agency management of 
Superfund sites. As mentioned in section II of this document, 
Sec. 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.
    EPA's Regional Office will accept and evaluate public comments 
before making a final decision to delete. If appropriate, the Agency 
will prepare a Responsiveness Summary to address any significant public 
comments received.
    If EPA does not receive significant adverse or critical comments 
and/or any significant new data submitted during the comment period, 
the site will be deleted from the NPL, effective March 20, 2000.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

    The following summary provides the Agency's rationale for the 
proposal to delete this Site from the NPL.

A. Site Background

    The Renora, Inc., Site is located at 83 South Main Street in the 
Bonhamtown section of Edison Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey. 
The Site occupies approximately one acre of the total property owned by 
the Clementi Brothers, Inc., and is surrounded by a chain link fence 
with locking gates. The Clementi property is bordered by Mill Brook to 
the north, the New Jersey Turnpike to the south, Main Street to the 
east and a Conrail right-of-way to the west. Land use in the vicinity 
of the Site is primarily light industrial and residential. The Site is 
currently zoned for commercial use.

B. History

    Renora, Inc., operated at the Site from 1978 until 1982, 
transporting and accepting materials containing hazardous substances 
for transfer, storage and blending. Contamination of the Site occurred 
as a result of spills during the transfer and blending of hazardous 
substances, and container leaks from the accumulated wastes.
    EPA placed the Site on the National Priorities List on September 9, 
1983. In 1984, under EPA oversight, the potentially responsible parties 
(PRPs) removed all containers, contents, and visibly contaminated soil 
from the Site. In 1987, the PRPs completed a Remedial Investigation/
Feasibility Study (RI/FS) to determine the nature and extent of 
contamination at the Site and to develop and evaluate remedial 
alternatives for the Site.
    A ROD for the site was signed on September 28, 1987. The selected 
remedy included the following components: excavation and off-site 
disposal of all polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated soils with 
concentrations above 5 parts per million (ppm); bioremediation of all 
polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contaminated soils with 
concentrations above 10 ppm, using ground water as an irrigation medium 
in the bioremediation treatment system; and backfilling, grading and 
vegetation of the Site. The PCB soil excavation and site restoration 
phase of the selected remedy was completed by the PRPs in January 1989 
and a final remedial action report for this phase of the cleanup was 
approved by EPA in 1990.
    In 1990, treatability studies on the PAH-contaminated soils 
indicated that bioremediation was not effective in reducing the PAH 
concentrations. A Phase II FS and risk assessment were performed, which 
concluded that PAH-contaminated surface soils were the only remaining 
medium of concern at the Site. Therefore, a modified remedy was 
identified to address the PAH-contaminated surface soils.
    Based on these findings, EPA issued a ROD Amendment on September 
30, 1994, documenting the selection of a modified remedy for the Site. 
The major components of the modified remedy were: excavation and off-
site disposal of the top two feet of surface soils and any debris from 
the entire site to an EPA-approved landfill; backfilling the Site with 
clean fill; and grading and vegetation of the Site. Excavation 
activities were completed in October 1995 by the PRPs. Backfilling and 
vegetating were completed in Spring 1996. A final inspection was 
conducted at the Site in April 1996. The PRPs' final remedial action 
report was approved by EPA in August 1996. EPA prepared a Site Close-
Out Report documenting the completion of construction activities at the 
Site in September 1996.
    Having met the deletion criteria, EPA proposes to delete this site 
from the NPL. EPA and NJDEP have determined that the response actions 
conducted to date are protective of human health and the environment.

C. Community Relations Activities

    Public meetings were held during 1987 and 1994 prior to issuance of 
the ROD and ROD Amendment for the Site. Public comments were received 
and addressed in the Responsiveness Summaries appended to the ROD and 
ROD Amendment. Regular Site updates were mailed to area residents to 
keep them informed about Site activities. In addition, local officials 
were kept apprised of Site progress.

D. Monitoring

    The following analyses were performed to confirm compliance with 
the remedial action objectives:
    <bullet> PCB contaminated soils were excavated to a depth of four 
feet. All excavated soils were stockpiled into separate piles and 
sampled for PCB content. Those soils exhibiting PCB concentrations less 
than 5 ppm were left on site; those exhibiting PCB concentrations 
greater than or equal to 5 ppm were disposed of off-site at an EPA 
approved landfill, Wayne Disposal, Inc., in Belleville, Michigan. Post-
excavation samples were then collected from all areas where 
contaminated soils were removed. Additional rounds of excavation and 
post-excavation sampling were conducted until the

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cleanup level was achieved in all areas of concern.
    <bullet> Once all excavation activities were completed in 1995, the 
Site was surveyed to ensure that the top two feet of soil had been 
excavated from the entire Site. Following backfilling, the Site was 
graded to match the original Site grading.
    <bullet> A rigorous testing regime was established to ensure that 
the clean backfill material and topsoil were suitable for use at the 
Site. Prior to approval for use by EPA and NJDEP, the fill and topsoil 
were analyzed for total petroleum hydrocarbons, total cyanide, 
pesticides, PCBs, metals, and semi-volatile and volatile organic 
compounds.

E. Operation and Maintenance

    Since the remedy involved the removal of contaminated soils from 
the site, there are no operation and maintenance requirements. However, 
two quarterly site inspections were performed following the completion 
of the remedial action to determine if there were any erosion of the 
clean fill or problems with growth of vegetation. Since no problems 
were observed, no further quarterly inspections were planned.
    Although EPA's ROD, as amended, did not require institutional 
controls, NJDEP independently required that the Site owner place a 
Declaration of Environmental Restrictions (DER) on the Site which 
states that the owner and operators shall not excavate, nor allow to be 
excavated, subsurface soils beyond a depth exceeding five feet. This 
DER shall remain in effect until terminated by NJDEP.

F. Protectiveness

    All the completion requirements for this Site have been met as 
specified in the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response Directive 
``Close Out Procedures for National Priorities List Sites''. 
Contaminated Site soils were remediated as directed in the 1987 ROD and 
the 1994 ROD Amendment. Confirmatory sampling of the clean fill 
provided further assurance that the Site no longer poses a threat to 
human health or the environment.
    EPA and NJDEP have determined that all appropriate Fund-financed 
responses under CERCLA at the Renora, Inc., Site have been completed, 
and that no further cleanup by responsible parties is expected. 
Consequently, EPA is proposing deletion of this Site from the NPL. 
Documents supporting this action are available in the docket.

V. Action

    The remedy selected for this Site has been implemented in 
accordance with the Record of Decision. Therefore, no further response 
action is necessary. The remedy has resulted in the significant 
reduction of the long-term potential for release of contaminants, 
therefore, human health and potential environmental impacts have been 
minimized. EPA and the State of New Jersey find that the remedy 
implemented continues to provide adequate protection of human health 
and the environment.
    The State of New Jersey concurs with EPA that the criteria for 
deletion of the release have been met. Therefore, EPA is deleting the 
Site from the NPL.
    This action will be effective March 20, 2000. However, if EPA 
receives dissenting comments before or on February 18, 2000, EPA will 
publish a document that withdraws this action.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Chemicals, 
Hazardous substances, Hazardous waste, Intergovernmental relations, 
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water 
pollution control, Water supply.

    Dated: January 3, 2000.
William J. Muszynski,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 2.
    Part 300, Title 40 of Chapter 1 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
is amended as follows:

Part 300--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for Part 300 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 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]

    2. Table 1 of appendix B to part 300 is amended by removing the 
entry for Renora, Inc. site, Edison Township, New Jersey.
[FR Doc. 00-1089 Filed 1-18-00; 8:45 am]
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