Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 197 / Friday, October 10, 1997 / Proposed Rules 52961

final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603

and 604. Alternatively, EPA may certify

that the rule will not have a significant

impact on a substantial number of small

entities. Small entities include small

businesses, small not-for-profit

enterprises, and government entities

with jurisdiction over populations of

less than 50,000.

SIP approvals under section 110 and

subchapter I, part D of the Clean Air Act

do not create any new requirements but

simply approve requirements that the

State is already imposing. Therefore,

because the Federal SIP approval does

not impose any new requirements, the

Administrator certifies that it does not

have a significant impact on any small

entities affected. Moreover, due to the

nature of the Federal-State relationship

under the CAA, preparation of a

flexibility analysis would constitute

Federal inquiry into the economic

reasonableness of state action. The

Clean Air Act forbids EPA to base its

actions concerning SIPs on such

grounds. Union Electric Co. v. U.S. EPA,

427 U.S. 246, 255–66 (1976); 42 U.S.C.

7410(a)(2).

C. Unfunded Mandates

Under section 202 of the Unfunded

Mandates Reform Act of 1995

(‘‘Unfunded Mandates Act’’), signed

into law on March 22, 1995, EPA must

prepare a budgetary impact statement to

accompany any proposed or final rule

that includes a Federal mandate that

may result in estimated costs to State,

local, or tribal governments in the

aggregate; or to private sector, of $100

million or more. Under section 205,

EPA must select the most cost-effective

and least burdensome alternative that

achieves the objectives of the rule and

is consistent with statutory

requirements. Section 203 requires EPA

to establish a plan for informing and

advising any small governments that

may be significantly or uniquely

impacted by the rule.

EPA has determined that the approval

action proposed does not include a

Federal mandate that may result in

estimated costs of $100 million or more

to either State, local, or tribal

governments in the aggregate, or to the

private sector. This Federal action

approves pre-existing requirements

under State or local law, and imposes

no new Federal requirements.

Accordingly, no additional costs to

State, local, or tribal governments, or to

the private sector, result from this

action.

D. Submission to Congress and the

General Accounting Office

Under section 801(a)(1)(A) of the

Administrative Procedures Act (APA) as

amended by the Small Business

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of

1996, EPA submitted a report containing

this rule and other required information

to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of

Representatives, and the Comptroller

General of the General Accounting

Office prior to publication of the rule in

today’s Federal Register. This rule is

not a ‘‘major rule’’ as defined by section

804(2) of the APA as amended.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air

pollution control, Hydrocarbons,

Intergovernmental relations, Ozone,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Volatile organic

compounds.

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401–7671q.

Dated: October 1, 1997.

Harry Seraydarian,

Acting Regional Administrator.

[FR Doc. 97–26856 Filed 10–9–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL–5906–7]

National Oil and Hazardous

Substances Pollution Contingency

Plan National Priorities List

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of intent to delete North

Hollywood Dump Superfund Site,

Shelby County, Tennessee, from the

National Priorities List.

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection

Agency, Region 4 (EPA) announces its

intent to delete the North Hollywood

Dump (the Site) from the National

Priorities List (NPL) and requests public

comment on this proposed action. The

NPL constitutes Appendix B of 40 CFR

part 300 which is the National Oil and

Hazardous Substances Pollution

Contingency Plan (NCP), which USEPA

promulgated pursuant to section 105 of

the Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability

Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended.

EPA and the State of Tennessee

Department of Environment and

Conservation (TDEC) have determined

that the Site poses no significant threat

to public health or the environment and,

therefore, further response measures

pursuant to CERCLA are not

appropriate.

DATES: Comments concerning this Site

may be submitted on or before

November 10, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed

to: Robert P. Morris, North Site

Management Branch, Waste

Management Division, U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency,

Region 4, Atlanta Federal Center, 61

Forsyth Street, S.W., Atlanta, Georgia

30303–3104.

Comprehensive information on this

Site is available through the public

docket which is available for viewing at

the North Hollywood Dump information

repositories at the following locations:

Memphis-Shelby County Public Library,

1850 Peabody Avenue, Memphis,

Tennessee 38104.

U.S. EPA Record Center, 61 Forsyth

Street, S.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30303–

3104.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robert P. Morris, North Site

Management Branch, Waste

Management Division, U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency,

Region 4, Atlanta Federal Center, 61

Forsyth Street, S.W., Atlanta, Georgia

30303–3104, (404) 562–8794 or 1–800–

435–9233, ext. 28794.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

The Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA), Region 4 announces its intent to

delete the North Hollywood Dump (the

Site) in Memphis, Shelby County,

Tennessee, from the National Priorities

List (NPL), Appendix B of the National

Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution

Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR part

300, and requests comments on its

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. As described in

§ 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, sites deleted

from the NPL remain eligible for

remedial actions in the unlikely event

that conditions at the site warrant

action.

The EPA will accept comments on the

proposal to delete this Site 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 states the procedures

that EPA is using for this action. Section

IV discusses the North Hollywood

Dump Site and explains how the Site

meets the deletion criteria.
52962 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 197 / Friday, October 10, 1997 / Proposed Rules

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

Section 300.425(e) of the NCP

provides that sites or releases may be

deleted from, or recategorized on the

NPL where no further response is

appropriate. In making a determination

to delete a site or release 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 parties

have implemented all appropriate

response actions required;

(ii) All appropriate Fund-financed

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.

Even if a site is deleted from the NPL,

where hazardous substances, pollutants,

or contaminants remain at the site above

levels that allow for unlimited use and

unrestricted exposure, EPA’s policy is

that a subsequent review of the site will

be conducted at least every five years

after the initiation of the remedial action

at the site to ensure that the site remains

protective public health and the

environment.

III. Deletion Procedures

The following procedures were used

for the intended deletion of this Site: (1)

EPA Region 4 has recommended

deletion and has prepared the relevant

documents; (2) The Tennessee

Department of Environment and

Conservation has concurred with the

deletion decision; (3) Concurrent with

this Notice of Intent to Delete, a local

notice has been published in local

newspapers and has been distributed to

appropriate Federal, state, and local

officials and other interested parties.

This document announces a 30-day

public comment period, provides an

address and telephone number for

submission of comments, and identifies

the location of the local site repository;

and (4) Region 4 has made all relevant

documents available in the Regional

Office and local site information

repository.

Deletion of the Site 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. As mentioned in

section II of this document,

§ 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.

For deletion of this Site, EPA will

accept and evaluate public comments

on EPA’s Notice of Intent to Delete

before making a final decision to delete.

If necessary, the Agency will prepare a

Responsiveness Summary to address

any significant public comments

received.

A deletion occurs when the Regional

Administrator places a final notice in

the Federal Register. Generally, the NPL

will reflect deletions in the final update

following the Notice. Public notices and

copies of the Responsiveness Summary

will be made available to local residents

by Region 4.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

The following site summary provides

the Agency’s rationale for the proposal

to delete this Site from the NPL.

A. Background

The 70-acre North Hollywood Dump

was used as a municipal dump from the

1930s until the City closed it in 1967.

However, some dumping of nonchemical refuse probably continued

until 1980.

B. History

In the late 1940s, the Hayden

Chemical Company used the Site to

dispose of wastes generated in the

production of sodium hydrochloride.

Hayden later was bought out by Velsicol

Chemical Corporation, which continued

the practice of dumping at the Site. At

one time, pesticide-contaminated sludge

from a closed sewer line leading to the

Velsicol plant was removed and buried

in a small area known as the ‘‘Endrin

Pit.’’ The Site was also used for the

disposal of other industrial wastes from

plants in the Memphis area. In the

1960s, Buckeye Cellulose in Memphis

sent copper-contaminated material to

the Site for disposal. In 1980, the EPA

found pesticides and heavy metals in

surface soil, groundwater and pond

sediments on the Site. The Site

contained pesticides in soils at levels of

concern, for example, chlordane at 160

mg/kg (the action level used for

chlordane was 100 mg/kg (ppm). Due to

high community concern in the early

1980s, the State of Tennessee

recommended this Site as the State’s

highest priority hazardous waste site.

Approximately 10,000 people live

within three miles of the dump site. An

elementary school is situated close to

the dump.

The groundwater and surface water

ponds were contaminated with

pesticides including chlordane and

endrin. The soil was contaminated with

pesticides and heavy metals including

lead, copper, and arsenic. Ingestion or

direct contact with contaminated

groundwater or soil posed a potential

public health threat. Ingestion of

contaminated fish caught from surface

water on the Site also posed a potential

public health risk.

The Site was addressed in two stages:

removal actions and a long-term

remedial phase focused on the cleanup

of the entire Site.

In 1980, the EPA took an emergency

action to slow the movement of

contaminants from the Site. Also, the

EPA installed a chain-link fence around

the Site and began a program to monitor

on-site wastes. In 1981, a technical

assistance group made up of

representatives from the State, the City

of Memphis, Shelby County, local

industry, and the EPA, removed some of

the chemical wastes from the surface of

the Site.

On October 23, 1981, the Site was

proposed for the National Priorities List

(NPL). The EPA then assumed the lead

role from TDEC to complete

investigations into the extent and nature

of contamination. The Site was placed

on the NPL on September 8, 1983. The

Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs)

took over the study April 1, 1984. After

the completion of the Supplemental

Remedial Investigation and Feasibility

Study (RI/FS) on September 13, 1990,

the Record of Decision (ROD) was

finalized.

C. Characterization of Risk

At that time, the Site contained high

levels of contaminants in soils (e.g.,

52,400 ppb chlordane, 67,800 ppb

heptachlor, 62.7 ppb DDT, et. al.) and

sediments (e.g., 87 ppm chlordene, 56

ppm chlordane, 21 ppm heptachlor, 140

ppm lead, et. al.). The ROD required

retrofitting the landfill to meet legal

sanitation standards. This included:

placement of a 2-foot clay cap, grading,

and revegetation; drainage of an

adjacent 40-acre pond known to have

held contaminated sediments;

installation of an approximate 3-foot

cover over the contaminated sediments;

and the removal of fish found to be

contaminated, followed by restocking of

the pond. Groundwater was to be

monitored to ensure contamination

levels remain within acceptable State

alternative concentration levels (ACLs)

which were set to be protective of

surface water (e.g., 0.45 micrograms/

liter (μg/L) endrin, 0.51 μg/L chlordane,

0.23 μg/L heptachlor, et. al.).

Additionally, the fenced Site was to be

expanded and maintained and,

restrictions on future use of the Site

were put into place. TDEC concurred

with the selected remedy. On August 3,

1992, the PRP, the Hollywood Dump
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 197 / Friday, October 10, 1997 / Proposed Rules 52963

Steering Committee (HDSC), entered

into a Consent Decree with the EPA to

perform remedy design and cleanup

activities at the Site. The Remedy

Design (RD) was completed September

27, 1993, by the PRP’s primary

consultant, the Memphis Environmental

Center (MEC). The PRP’s Remedial

Action Construction Contract was

awarded to MEC on January 17, 1994.

MEC began cleanup activities in early

1994. The capping and grading of the

landfill and the drum removal was

completed by MEC in 1995. Drainage

and covering of sediments began in

1995 and were completed by MEC in

December 1996.

D. Operation and Maintenance

Operation and Maintenance (O&M),

including the monitoring program, is in

place. The monitoring program is

specific to the groundwater medium. As

stipulated in the ROD and the Consent

Decree, contaminant levels in

groundwater are not to exceed ACLs.

The contingency alternative for

groundwater exceeding ACLs is that it

will be pumped from the shallow

aquifer and discharged into the

municipal sewer system. To date,

contaminant levels in groundwater have

not exceeded ACLs. Cleanup activities

at the site are now complete.

Confirmational monitoring of

groundwater demonstrate that no

significant risk to public health or the

environment is posed by materials

remaining at the Site. The EPA and

TDEC concur that conditions at the Site

pose no unacceptable risks to human

health or the environment.

E. Five-Year Review

No hazardous substances remain

uncontained or exposed at the Site

above health-based levels. However, the

Site is not available for unlimited use or

unrestricted exposure. The first policy

five-year review for this site shall be

completed by January 17, 1999.

One of the three criteria for deletion

specifies that EPA may delete a site

from the NPL if the responsible parties

or other parties have implemented all

appropriate response actions required.

The EPA, with the concurrence of

TDEC, contends this criterion has been

met. Subsequently, EPA is proposing

deletion of this Site from the NPL.

Documents supporting this action are

available from the public docket.

Dated: September 30, 1997.

A. Stanley Meiburg,

Deputy Regional Administrator, USEPA,

Region 4.

[FR Doc. 97–26644 Filed 10–9–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P