[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 27 (Monday, February 10, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 5950-5953]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-2994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300

[FRL-5684-8]


National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan; 
National Priorities List

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.


[[Page 5951]]


ACTION: Notice of intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the 
National Priorities List: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region II announces 
its intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the National 
Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this action. The 
NPL is 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 (CERCLA), as amended. EPA and 
the State of New York have determined that no further cleanup by 
responsible parties is appropriate under CERCLA. Moreover, EPA and the 
State have determined that CERCLA activities conducted at the Conklin 
Dumps to date have been protective of public health, welfare, and the 
environment.

DATES: Comments concerning the deletion of the Conklin Dumps site from 
the NPL may be submitted on or before March 12, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments concerning the deletion of the Conklin Dumps site 
from the NPL may be submitted to: Arnold R. Bernas, P.E., Remedial 
Project Manager, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region II, 290 
Broadway, 20th floor, New York, NY 10007-1866.
    Comprehensive information on the Conklin Dumps site is contained in 
the EPA Region II public docket, which is located at EPA's Region II 
office (the 18th floor), and is available for viewing, by appointment 
only, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
holidays. For further information, or to request an appointment to 
review the public docket, please contact Mr. Bernas at (212) 637-3964.
    Background information from the Regional public docket is also 
available for viewing at the Conklin Dumps site's Administrative Record 
repository located at: Conklin Town Hall, 1271 Conklin Road, Conklin, 
NY 13748.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arnold Bernas at (212) 637-3964.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Introduction

    EPA Region II announces its intent to delete the Conklin Dumps site 
from the NPL and requests public comment on this action. The NPL is 
Appendix B to the NCP, which EPA promulgated pursuant to Section 105 of 
CERCLA, as amended. 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 those sites. Sites on the NPL may be 
the subject of remedial actions (RAs) financed by the Hazardous 
Substances Superfund Response Trust Fund (the ``Fund''). Pursuant to 
Sec. 300.425 (e)(3) of the NCP, any site deleted from the NPL remains 
eligible for Fund-financed RAs, if conditions at such site warrant 
action.
    EPA will accept comments concerning the Conklin Dumps site for 
thirty (30) days after publication of this document in the Federal 
Register (until March 12, 1997).
    Section II of this notice explains the criteria for deleting sites 
from the NPL. Section III discusses the procedures that EPA is using 
for this action. Section IV discusses how the Conklin Dumps site meets 
the deletion criteria.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    The NCP establishes the criteria that the Agency uses to delete 
sites from the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR Sec. 300.425 (e), sites 
may be deleted from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. 
In making this determination, EPA, in consultation with the State, will 
consider whether any of the following criteria have been met:
    1. That responsible or other persons have implemented all 
appropriate response actions required; or
    2. All appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA have been 
implemented, and no further cleanup by responsible parties is 
appropriate; or
    3. The remedial investigation has shown that the release poses no 
significant threat to public health or the environment and, therefore, 
taking remedial measures is not appropriate.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The NCP provides that EPA shall not delete a site from the NPL 
until the State in which the release was located has concurred, and the 
public has been afforded an opportunity to comment on the proposed 
deletion. Deletion of a site from the NPL does not affect responsible 
party liability or impede agency efforts to recover costs associated 
with response efforts. The NPL is designed primarily for informational 
purposes and to assist agency management.
    The following procedures were used for the intended deletion of the 
Conklin Dumps site:
    1. EPA Region II has recommended deletion and has prepared the 
relevant documents.
    2. The State of New York has concurred with the deletion decision.
    3. Concurrent with this Notice of Intent to Delete, a notice has 
been published in local newspapers and has been distributed to 
appropriate federal, state and local officials, and other interested 
parties. This notice announces a thirty (30)-day public comment period 
on the deletion package starting on February 10, 1997 and concluding on 
March 12, 1997.
    4. The Region has made all relevant documents available in the 
regional office and the local site information repository.
    EPA Region II will accept and evaluate public comments and prepare 
a Responsiveness Summary, which will address the comments received, 
before a final decision is made. The Agency believes that deletion 
procedures should focus on notice and comment at the local level. 
Comments from the local community may be most pertinent to deletion 
decisions. If, after consideration of these comments, EPA decides to 
proceed with deletion, the EPA Regional Administrator will place a 
Notice of Deletion in the Federal Register. The NPL will reflect any 
deletions in the next update. Public notices and copies of the 
Responsiveness Summary will be made available to the public by EPA 
Region II.

IV. Basis for Intended Site Deletion

Site History and Background

    The Conklin Dumps site originally consisted of two landfilled areas 
totaling about 37 acres, referred to as the Upper and Lower Landfills. 
The Lower Landfill, which was operated between 1964 and 1969, contained 
approximately 48,000 cubic yards of wastes before it was excavated and 
consolidated with the Upper Landfill. The Upper Landfill, which 
originally contained approximately 55,000 cubic yards of waste, was 
operated from 1969 until 1975, when a closure order was issued by the 
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The 
property is currently owned by the Town of Conklin.
    A two-phase hydrogeologic investigation was completed by O'Brien 
and Gere Engineers for the Broome County Industrial Development Agency 
in 1984 and 1985; additional field work was performed in 1986. In June 
1986, the site was nominated for inclusion on the National Priorities 
List. In June 1987, a Consent Order was signed

[[Page 5952]]

between the Town of Conklin and NYSDEC, which covered the performance 
of a remedial investigation and feasibility study (RI/FS) and the 
remedial design (RD)/remedial action (RA).
    The RI, which was completed in December 1988, indicated limited 
ground-water contamination in the immediate vicinity of the Upper 
Landfill. Confirmatory sampling, performed in June 1990, confirmed the 
RI findings and provided additional validated data.
    An FS report was completed in January 1991.
    EPA, in consultation with NYSDEC, issued a Proposed Plan on 
February 3, 1991. A public comment period began on February 4, 1991 and 
extended until March 6, 1991. A public meeting was held at the Conklin 
Town Hall on February 25, 1991. A ROD, which was signed by the EPA 
Regional Administrator on March 29, 1991, called for, among other 
things, capping of the Upper Landfill and the Lower Landfill in-place, 
leachate collection, either on- or off-site treatment of the leachate, 
and long-term monitoring.
    During preliminary design activities associated with the selected 
remedy, it was determined that the construction of a leachate 
collection trench and cap at the Lower Landfill would present 
significant engineering difficulties due to the proximity of an 
adjacent wetland and railroad tracks. In order to eliminate the 
leachate seeps at the Lower Landfill, it would be necessary to install 
a leachate collection system below the water table. A leachate 
collection system installed below the water table, however, would 
collect vast amounts of uncontaminated ground water and could adversely 
impact the adjacent wetland by dewatering a portion of it, unless 
hydraulic barriers were installed (which in itself could adversely 
impact the wetland). In addition, installing a cap on the Lower 
Landfill could negatively impact the adjacent wetland in that it would 
encroach on the wetland. Due to these technical feasibility and 
environmental concerns, the selected remedy was modified by an 
Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD) in September 1992. The 
modified remedy consists of the excavation of the Lower Landfill, 
consolidation of the excavated Lower Landfill contents onto the Upper 
Landfill, capping of the Upper Landfill, construction of a leachate 
collection system, and either on- or off-site treatment of the 
leachate.
Lower Landfill
    The RD associated with the excavation of the Lower Landfill and 
consolidation of the excavated wastes onto the Upper Landfill commenced 
in April 1991 and was completed in September 1992.
    The excavation of the Lower Landfill began in January 1993. The 
composition of the wastes that were encountered during the excavation 
was primarily soil and decomposed organic matter intermixed with scrap 
metal, bottles and fabric from a local tent manufacturer. Although four 
55 gallon drums were encountered, they were found to be empty or 
contained non-hazardous debris, and were crushed and disposed of in the 
Upper Landfill.
    The waste that was excavated from the Lower Landfill was deposited 
on the Upper Landfill in approximately one-foot lifts. This effort was 
completed in July 1993.
    A Remedial Action Report, documenting the completion of the 
excavation of the Lower Landfill was approved on September 29, 1993.
Upper Landfill
    The RD associated with the capping of the consolidated wastes on 
the Upper Landfill and the construction of a leachate collection, 
storage, and pre-treatment system commenced in April 1991 and was 
completed in July 1993.
    The compaction and regrading of the excavated waste mass, 
installation of a leachate recovery system, construction of a final 
cover system for the Upper Landfill, and the installation of an eight-
foot high chain linked fence around the Upper Landfill to restrict 
access, was performed from October 1993 to November 1994.
Leachate Storage and Pre-Treatment System
    In June 1995, the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewer Board 
approved the Town of Conklin's application for discharge of the 
leachate from the Upper Landfill into the sanitary sewer system for 
treatment at the Binghamton-Johnson City Joint Sewage Treatment Plant 
in Vestal, New York. This approval required that the Town obtain an 
industrial wastewater discharge permit and temporarily store the 
leachate in an on-site storage tank while it is sampled and analyzed to 
determine if it meets the discharge requirements of the permit.
    The construction of a leachate storage, pre-treatment system, and 
pipeline to the sewer interceptor, which began in November 1995, 
included the installation of a 30,000 gallon horizontal steel storage 
tank with a secondary containment dike, installation of a leachate pre-
treatment system, consisting of a series of bag filters to remove 
solids, and installation of a pipe to discharge the leachate from the 
storage and pre-treatment system to the sanitary sewer system. Although 
the work was completed in January 1996, a final inspection could not be 
conducted until after the snow melt in June 1996.
    A Remedial Action Report, documenting the completion of the 
construction of the final cover system and leachate collection system 
for the Upper Landfill, leachate collection tank installation, and 
construction of a pipeline to the sewer interceptor was approved on 
July 15, 1996.
    A Superfund Site Close-Out Report for the site was approved on 
September 13, 1996.

Summary of Operation and Maintenance and Five-Year Review Requirements

    Pursuant to terms of the Consent Order signed with NYSDEC on June 
12, 1987, the Town of Conklin will perform post-remediation operation 
and maintenance associated with the Upper Landfill's final cover system 
and the leachate collection and pre-treatment systems. These activities 
will consist of landfill cover system inspection and maintenance 
(including grass mowing, fence repairs, soil cover repairs); leachate 
collection system inspection, operation, and maintenance; and leachate 
pre-treatment system inspection, operation, and maintenance. In 
addition, groundwater, surface water, and leachate sampling and 
analysis will be performed.
    A statutory review of the long-term monitoring and inspection 
program reports will be performed in January 1998, five years after the 
initiation of the RA, to assure that the remedy remains effective in 
protecting human health and the environment.

Summary of How the Deletion Criteria Has Been Met

    All of the completion requirements for this site have been met as 
specified in OSWER Directive 9320.2-09. Specifically, based on the 
field observations associated with NYSDEC construction oversight, the 
results of the preliminary post-construction and the final post-
construction inspections, and the results of samples collected during 
the implantation of the remedy, it has been determined that 
construction for the Conklin Dumps site has been completed and that the 
construction activities performed on-site were consistent with the RD 
plans and specifications and conform with the remedies selected in the 
ROD, as modified by the ESD.

[[Page 5953]]

    EPA, with concurrence from the State on December 16, 1996, has 
determined that the response actions undertaken at the Conklin Dumps 
site are protective of human health and the environment.
    In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), sites may be deleted from the 
NPL where no further response is appropriate. EPA, in consultation with 
the State, has determined that all appropriate responses under CERCLA 
have been implemented and that no further cleanup by responsible 
parties is appropriate. Having met the deletion criteria, EPA proposes 
to delete the Conklin Dumps site from the NPL.

    Dated: January 17, 1997.
William J. Muszynski,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 97-2994 Filed 2-7-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P