Opinion ID: 3034999
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: deference to the epa’s characterization

Text: Having concluded that Congress did not draw a clear line between removal and remedial actions, we turn to the second step under Chevron and ask whether, in view of the deference owed to the EPA, the Libby cleanup was a removal action as a matter of law. As noted earlier, the level of deference we accord to a given agency interpretation is directed by its form. 15564 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. [9] The administrative posture of CERCLA presents two types of agency interpretations. One is the National Contingency Plan, which carries the force of law.20 The second relates to informal agency interpretations, which at a minimum receive respect and, depending on the interplay of Mead and Brand X, may even deserve Chevron deference. Whichever of these applies, we reach the same result: We hold that the EPA has rationally construed CERCLA and that construction deserves our respect. Cf. Alaska Dep’t of Envtl. Conservation, 540 U.S. at 485-88 (EPA “rationally construed” Clean Air Act in internal guidance memoranda, which construction deserved “respect and approbation” but not Chevron deference). As interpreted by the EPA, the removal/remedial distinction boils down to whether the exigencies of the situation were such that the EPA did not have time to undertake the procedural steps required for a remedial action, and, in responding to such a time-sensitive threat, the EPA sought to minimize and stabilize imminent harms to human health and the environment. The EPA did so here. The definitions of “removal” and “remedial action” in the EPA-promulgated National Contingency Plan merely parrot CERCLA’s definitions, aside from a few minor revisions for the National Contingency Plan context. See, e.g., 40 C.F.R. § 300.5 (replacing “EPA” for “the President” in definition of “remedial action” and noting that, for the purpose of the National Contingency Plan, “remedial” and “removal” include enforcement activities related thereto). Because these definitions do nothing to interpret the definitions in CERCLA, they are unhelpful to our inquiry. 20 40 C.F.R. § 300.2 explains that the President delegated to the EPA “the responsibility for the amendment of the [National Contingency Plan].” See also id. (“The [National Contingency Plan] is applicable to response actions taken pursuant to the authorities under CERCLA . . . .”); Vigil v. Leavitt, 381 F.3d 826, 834 (9th Cir. 2004) (“Congress has given EPA general rulemaking authority, which, when exercised, requires our deference in accordance with Chevron.”) (citation omitted). UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15565 That being said, other parts of the National Contingency Plan offer some guidance. For instance, 40 C.F.R. § 300.415(e) sets forth examples of activities that are “as a general rule,” appropriate as part of a removal action, but notes that the list “is not exhaustive and is not intended to prevent the lead agency from taking any other actions deemed necessary under CERCLA.” See also 42 U.S.C. § 9601(23) (providing that the scope of removals is not limited to the examples in the statutory definition). The examples include, among others, fences or other site control precautions; capping of contaminated soils to reduce migration; excavation, consolidation, or removal of highly contaminated soils; and removal and treatment of hazardous materials where it will reduce the likelihood of human exposure. 40 C.F.R. § 300.415(e). The bulk of activities carried out in Libby easily fall within the scope of the listed examples. For instance, the EPA removed hazardous soil from the screening plant, restricted access to contaminated roads, installed a temporary cover on a school’s ice skating rink, excavated and backfilled contaminated soil, and removed exposed piles of vermiculite. [10] Although “immediacy” is not used in the definition of “removal” either in CERCLA or the National Contingency Plan, the examples in 40 C.F.R. § 300.415(e) imply a level of urgency in addressing the threat both by expressly using the word “immediately,” see id. § 300.415(e)(9) (providing alternative water supply “where necessary immediately to reduce exposure to contaminated household water”), and by describing looming threats against which prompt action is needed, see, e.g., id. § 300.415(e)(4) (capping contaminated soils “where needed to reduce migration of hazardous substances . . . into soil, ground or surface water, or air”). Not surprisingly, the criteria used to determine whether the selection of a removal action is appropriate are similarly infused with this sense of immediacy. See, e.g., id. § 300.415(b)(2)(iv) (factors include whether there are hazardous substances in soils “largely at or near the surface, that may migrate”). 15566 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. The need for immediate action permeates the EPA’s activities in Libby. The toxicologist’s May 17, 2000, report that was attached to the First Action Memo concludes that “[a]irborne fiber concentrations in the residential area of Libby exceeded the present occupational Permissible Exposure Level (PEL) of 0.1 fiber/cubic centimeter established by OSHA 1994 (MRI, 1982).”21 These levels translated into an immediate public health threat because, as documented in the health consultation by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, complete exposure pathways were present around Libby. For example, EPA investigations found deteriorating bags of vermiculite at the former screening plant, as well as vermiculite tailings at the surface of a walking path next to the Libby High School track. And the dilapidated condition of houses was such that “[i]n some Libby homes, vermiculite insulation is literally falling out into the living space from gaps around light fixtures and electrical switches.” That these particles were present in people’s homes and schools is especially troubling because, in contrast to standards set by OSHA for workers who are exposed to particles during an eight-hour workday, home and school contamination could result in exposure for twenty-four hours per day. In short, the carcinogenic fibers were widespread and, contrary to Grace’s assertions, were not contained such that they would not be inhaled. As ominously observed by the EPA, “Of course once airborne, the fibers will migrate whichever way the wind blows.” The sequence of activities in Libby further comports with the EPA’s description in the National Contingency Plan of the preferred development of response actions. The National Contingency Plan provides that the agency should orderly transi21 The Permissible Exposure Level is for eight hours, not twenty-four. Although Grace argues that the EPA’s toxicologist’s report is incorrect, it does not cite to the report of any other experts who concluded otherwise. Nor does Grace cite to any provisions of OSHA that require a different protocol for the taking of samples which the EPA’s expert did not follow. UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15567 tion from a removal to a remedial action if it “determines that the removal action will not fully address the threat posed by the release.” 40 C.F.R. § 300.415(g). This progression is evidenced by the three Action Memos for Libby, which began by calling for a removal action but later paved the way for a remedial action.22 Indeed, the First Action Memo notes that the proposed removal action “should compliment and contribute to the overall success of any remedial actions in the future.” The Third Action Memo further states, “Continued response actions are appropriate and consistent with the remedial actions to be taken.” Thus, the EPA conducted its removal action in Libby not in lieu of a remedial action, but rather as a prelude to a comprehensive remedial action. Looking beyond the National Contingency Plan, the EPA’s characterization of response actions in documents that do not have the heft of regulations still carry weight because “[c]ogent ‘administrative interpretations . . . not [the] products of formal rulemaking . . . nevertheless warrant respect.’ ” Alaska Dep’t of Envtl. Conservation, 540 U.S. at 488 (quoting Wash. State Dep’t of Soc. & Health Servs. v. Guardianship Estate of Keffeler, 537 U.S. 371, 385 (2003) (alterations in original)); see also FTC v. Garvey, 383 F.3d 891, 903 (9th Cir. 2004) (where Chevron deference does not apply, “[an agency’s] pronouncement’s persuasiveness may nevertheless entitle it to respect”). The need for agency expertise is particularly acute when we are faced with a complex regulatory regime, such as CERCLA. In this situation, we recognize that the “well-reasoned views of an expert administrator rest on a body of experience and informed judgment to which courts and litigants may properly resort for guidance.” Alaska Dep’t of Envtl. Conservation, 540 U.S. at 487 (internal citations and quotation marks omitted). 22 We note, however, that there need not be a linear progression from a removal to a remedial action. For example, “removal actions may be conducted in response to a time-critical situation at a remedial response site.” 53 Fed. Reg. 51,394, 51,405 (Dec. 21, 1988) (comment in the EPA’s proposed revisions to the National Contingency Plan). 15568 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. Most notably, the EPA issued a memo in 2000 to guide project managers during the decisionmaking process of selecting between remedial and removal actions. See Stephen Luftig, Director, Office of Emergency and Remedial Response, Use of Non-Time-Critical Removal Authority in Superfund Response Actions (Feb. 14, 2000), available at http:// www.epa.gov/superfund/resources/remedy/pdf/memofeb 2000-s.pdf (last visited July 26, 2005) (hereinafter “Removal Memo”). Amplifying the National Contingency Plan’s focus on the immediacy of the threat, the Removal Memo emphasizes “time sensitivity,” i.e., “the need to take relatively prompt action,” as a key characteristic of removal actions: “[E]ven expensive and complex response actions may be removal action candidates if they are relatively timesensitive.” Removal Memo, supra, at 3-4 (“For example, dredging large quantities of contaminated sediment could be conducted using removal authority where such action was the appropriate course for abating or controlling a time-sensitive threat.”).23 An EPA report published in 2000 describing the removal program reiterates that “[t]he critical element in all cases is time—prompt action is crucial.” Office of Emergency and Remedial Response, EPA, EPA 540-K-00-002, The Emergency Response and Removal Program 3 (2000), available at http://www.epa.gov/superfund/resources/emer_ res.htm (last visited July 26, 2005) (hereinafter “Removal Program Report”). Courts have also stressed the immediacy of a threat in 23 The three Action Memos all categorize the action in Libby as “Time Critical.” The EPA may also choose to conduct “non-time-critical” removal actions “when the lead Agency determines, based on the site evaluation, that a removal action is appropriate, and a planning period of at least six months is available before on-site activities must begin.” Office of Emergency and Remedial Response, EPA, Conducting Non-TimeCritical Removal Actions Under CERCLA, EPA/540/F-94/009, at 1(Dec. 1993), available at http://www.epa.gov/superfund/resources/remedy/pdf/ 540f-94009-s.pdf (last visited July 26, 2005). This subset of removal actions is subject to more stringent procedural requirements. UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15569 deciding whether a cleanup is a removal action. See, e.g., City of Wichita v. Trs. of APCO Oil Corp. Liquidating Trust, 306 F. Supp. 2d 1040, 1077-78 (D. Kan. 2003) (city’s cleanup was “remedial in nature” under CERCLA where “[t]he court has heard no evidence that the contamination at the Site posed a threat to human health or the environment which required an immediate response”); Carson Harbor Vill., Ltd. v. Unocal Corp., 287 F. Supp. 2d 1118, 1157 (C.D. Cal. 2003) (finding action was remedial where “[t]here is no evidence in the record that the materials posed the type of threat to human health and welfare that required immediate action”); Hatco Corp. v. W.R. Grace & Co.-Conn., 849 F. Supp. 931, 963 (D.N.J. 1994) (in finding response was a removal, placing “significant weight upon the fact that the release of [the hazardous substance] was not only imminent, but actually occurring”). While stressing time sensitivity, the Removal Memo downplays the importance that some courts have placed on duration, i.e., “how long the response action will take to build or implement,” because “removal actions are most often of short duration, but they certainly can be long-running responses, too, thereby undercutting the probative value of duration . . . in deciding whether an action is removal rather than remedial in nature.” Removal Memo, supra, at 3 n.2. But see SherwinWilliams Co. v. City of Hamtramck, 840 F. Supp. 470, 475-76 (E.D. Mich. 1993) (“[T]he extended and protracted nature of the cleanup indicate that the City has engaged in a remedial action.”). Accordingly, the action in Libby is not disqualified from being a removal action just because it took several years. Cf. Vill. of Milford v. K-H Holding Corp., 390 F.3d 926, 934 (6th Cir. 2004) (explaining that the court has “never held” that the short-term nature of an action is required for finding costs recoverable as removal costs). The length of the cleanup in Libby is especially understandable given that harsh winters truncated the construction season and that the sheer magnitude of the initial cleanup far exceeded the normal situation faced by the EPA. Cf. Sunoco, 337 F.3d at 1244 (concluding 15570 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. that action was a removal in part because it was finished in about 14 months, “a relatively short time frame in the context of a clean-up lasting more than a decade in a harsh environment” (internal quotation marks omitted)). Likewise, the Removal Memo describes courts’ reliance on the “permanence” of the response as “sometimes misleading”: “As a practical matter, removal actions are often permanent solutions such as can be the case in a typical soil or drum removal.” Removal Memo, supra, at 3 n.3; cf. Geraghty & Miller, 234 F.3d at 927 (“Even if the replacements for these wells are integral to the long-term remediation of the site, that does not mean that their initial placement cannot be categorized as removal.”). This observation seems logical, as we do not want to tie the EPA’s hands or compel it to adopt shortterm remedies for fear that any more permanent solutions automatically will be dubbed “remedial actions.” Nor would it make economic or practical sense to impose a requirement that removal actions must be only temporary in nature. The Removal Memo instead uses the term “comprehensiveness” to distinguish between the use of removal authority to conduct interim or partial response actions that are focused on immediate risk reduction as compared with a final or “comprehensive” response at the site. Removal Memo, supra, at 3 n.3. The Libby cleanup exhibits this two-tier approach of an interim removal action that the EPA transforms into a comprehensive remedial action. Cf. Geraghty & Miller, 234 F.3d at 926 (noting that “removal actions generally are immediate or interim responses”). These informal interpretations combined with the descriptions in the National Contingency Plan provide a persuasive interpretation that removal actions encompass interim, partial time-sensitive responses taken to counter serious threats to public health. As the EPA explained in the Second Action Memo, “CERCLA was designed and enacted to prevent illness and death resulting from exposure to hazardous substances, not wait for its occurrence to prove a threat.” UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15571 Grace attempts to add another layer of complexity to our analysis by challenging various scientific and other methodology judgments made by the EPA as part of the cleanup. Once we determine that a response action on the whole is, by nature, classified as a removal action under the law, we will not delve further to second-guess the underlying data absent a showing of specific evidence that the EPA’s conclusions were not warranted. See Balt. Gas and Elec. Co. v. Natural Res. Def. Council, 462 U.S. 87, 103 (1983). (“When examining this kind of scientific determination, as opposed to simple findings of fact, a reviewing court must generally be at its most deferential.”). Although Grace argues in its briefs that the EPA’s data and conclusions were wrong, it did not present evidence to support its claim that the EPA’s selection of a removal action was arbitrary and capricious, see 42 U.S.C. § 9613(j)(2), or that its characterization of the action as a removal action did not comport with the statutory definition, see 42 U.S.C. § 9601(23). Of course, the EPA does not have free rein to ignore accepted scientific principle or to adopt findings that are wholly at odds with the record evidence. See Great Basin Mine Watch v. United States EPA, 401 F.3d 1094, 1098 (9th Cir. 2005) (court will overturn a final agency action if the agency “entirely failed to consider an important aspect of the problem, offered an explanation for its decision that runs counter to the evidence before the agency, or is so implausible that it could not be ascribed to a difference in view or the product of agency expertise”) (quoting Motor Vehicle Mfrs. Ass’n v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 463 U.S. 29, 43 (1983)). But such is not the case here. Nor can it be said that the EPA’s conclusions are arbitrary and capricious. See Envtl. Def. Ctr., Inc. v. EPA, 344 F.3d 832, 858 n.36 (9th Cir. 2003) (an agency decision is arbitrary and capricious if there is no rational connection between the decision and the facts in the record). The disputes between Grace and the EPA regarding testing methodology and data analysis are exceedingly complex. The administrative record includes, for instance, the EPA’s 15572 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. response to Grace’s contention that the EPA “inappropriately calculated PCMEs [phase contrast microscopy equivalents] if those findings are going to be compared to the OSHA PEL [Occupational Safety & Health Administration permissible exposure limits].” We are not scientists, nor do we intend to play armchair EPA administrator. But we are judges and it is our role to evaluate the record evidence against the standard of review. We defer to the EPA’s reasoned judgment. See Sunoco, 337 F.3d at 1243 (“[Skidmore] deference seems particularly appropriate where an action reasonably can be classified as both ‘removal’ and ‘remedial’ under CERCLA’s complex definitional provisions.”). The EPA’s scientific basis for finding an immediate threat to the public health is thoroughly documented over thousands of pages. In addition to the detailed evaluation of the threat in the three Action Memos, the administrative record includes, for example, comprehensive reports by both the EPA’s regional toxicologist and senior toxicologist explaining the imminent and substantial endangerment to public health in Libby, extensive responses by the EPA to Grace’s comments on the cleanup, and lengthy findings by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry on medical testing conducted on Libby residents. In particular, the Agency’s February 22, 2001, report documents findings from its study conducted from July through November 2000 in which 1,078 people participated. Of those participants, the findings can be summarized as follows: UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15573 Type of Possible Exposure Percentage who had a pleural abnormality24 on the chest radiograph that could be seen by at least two certi- fied specialists Grace Workers and second- 37% ary contractors Other work-related contacts 18% with vermiculite Household contacts with 20% Grace Workers Vermiculite insulation in 14% home Some recreational contact 16% with vermiculite No apparent exposure, but 14% lives in or around Libby In comparison, the report recites the following statistics: 24 According to the report, “Asbestos exposure is associated with several changes in the pleura (lining of the lungs and internal chest wall). . . . They indicate past exposure to asbestos, and can often be detected in chest radiographs (CXW), also known as X-rays.” The report goes on to explain that “[t]he presence of any of these pleural abnormalities on chest radiograph, associated with asbestos exposure, indicates increased risk for mesothelioma and lung cancer.” 15574 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. Studies of differing groups within the United States believed to have no substantive work-related asbestos exposures have found the prevalence of pleural abnormalities ranging from 0.02% among blue-collar workers in North Carolina [Castellan 1985], to 0.9% among loggers in Washington and Oregon [Stilbolt 1991], to 1.8% among New Jersey residents [Ander- son 1979], and 2.3% among patients at Veterans Administration hospitals in New Jersey [Miller JA 1996]. Further, in response to the EPA’s request that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry comment on whether the proposed removal action was appropriate to protect the public health, the Agency concluded in a May 17, 2000, report that “Asbestos contamination is present at the screening plant and export plant at levels that pose a public health hazard. The time critical removal action proposed by EPA is warranted to protect the public health.” Beyond the findings that prompted the EPA to undertake the removal action, the administrative record also documents the concrete steps taken to combat this threat, such as removing vermiculite tailings from under and around running tracks at local schools, covering and demarcating major contaminated areas at residential properties, and cleaning the interiors of infected homes. [11] In sum, given the sweeping language in the definition of “removal,” the significant deference due to the EPA’s interpretation of this language, and the scope of the interim cleanup, we hold that the EPA’s cleanup in Libby falls within the bounds of a removal action. The EPA “has rationally construed the Act’s text and [the] EPA’s construction warrants our respect and approbation.” Alaska Dep’t of Envtl. Conservation, 540 U.S. at 485. This holding comports with CERCLA’s fundamental goal of protecting the public health. See, e.g., Hanford Downwinders Coalition, 71 F.3d at 1481 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. 15575 (“[T]his circuit has joined others in recognizing that protection of the public health was one of the remedial goals of CERCLA.”). Considering the chaotic history behind CERCLA’s passage, we are particularly sensitive not to adopt a reading that would undermine its remedial purpose. See Clark v. Uebersee Finanz-Korporation, 332 U.S. 480, 488 (1947) (advising that courts should not adopt an interpretation of statutory language that would “run counter to the policy of the Act and be disruptive of its purpose . . . [when] dealing with hasty legislation which Congress did not stop to perfect as an integrated whole”). [12] In so holding, we recognize that Congress created a bifurcated scheme of removal and remedial actions and, accordingly, there must be outer limits to removal actions. But the EPA did not exceed these limits in this case. Nor need we delineate the outer parameters. We simply conclude that the EPA’s characterization of the cleanup in Libby as a removal action is amply supported by the administrative record and easily withstands scrutiny under the modified level of interpretive deference afforded by Mead and Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. Although deference to the EPA’s interpretation is significant, it is not blind. Courts must, as a matter of law, ultimately determine that the EPA’s characterization of a given response action accords with CERCLA, as we so determine here. [13] Crucial to our determination is the documented evidence that, absent immediate attention, the airborne toxic particles would continue to pose a substantial threat to public health. To combat this widespread, looming threat, the EPA had no choice but to undertake an aggressive removal action of an expansive scope. The removal activities easily fall within the statutory definition of removal. Notably, the definitions for removal and remedial actions consciously include some overlap. Because of the nature of the contaminant, some of the measures taken by the EPA as part of the removal action might also effect a permanent solution for a particular 15576 UNITED STATES v. W.R. GRACE & CO. location (e.g., removing exposed piles of vermiculite). But by no means did the removal action fully eliminate the public health threat or amount to a full-blown remediation. According to the EPA’s CERCLIS database, the EPA is continuing work to ensure that potential or actual human exposures are under control. See http://cfpub1.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/ csitinfo.cfm?id=0801744 (last visited July 26, 2005). Although Libby’s problems appear far from solved, the EPA is making progress. As envisioned by CERCLA, the EPA plans to effect a comprehensive resolution to the asbestos contamination through the pending remedial action.