Opinion ID: 767758
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Which Removal Costs are Proper?

Text: 90 The Bohatys argue that the removal action incurred unnecessary costs, for which they should not be liable. In particular, they claim that (1) the EPA should not have removed the empty drums at all, because they posed no environmental hazard; (2) the EPA should not have removed the underground storage tank, because it posed no environmental hazard; (3) after the EPA consolidated the contents of the 550 waste-containing drums into 300 drums for disposal, it should not have disposed of the 250 additional empty drums, because they posed no environmental hazard; and (4) at a minimum, the 700 empty drums should have been disposed of in a standard landfill rather than sent to a hazardous-materials site (presumably, at greater cost). 91 CERCLA places liability on responsible parties for all costs of removal or remedial action incurred by the United States . . . not inconsistent with the national contingency plan. 42 U.S.C. § 9607(a)(2)(A). The national contingency plan (NCP) provides that: 92 At any release . . . where the lead agency makes the determination . . . that there is a threat to public health or welfare of the United States or the environment, the lead agency may take any appropriate removal action to abate, prevent, minimize, stabilize, mitigate, or eliminate the release or the threat of release. 93 40 C.F.R. § 300.415 (b)(1) (emphasis added). 94 (e) The following removal actions are, as a general rule, appropriate in the types of situations shown; however, thislist is not exhaustive and is not intended to prevent the lead agency from taking any other actions deemed necessary under CERCLA, CWA section 311, or other appropriate federal or state enforcement or response authorities, and the list does not create a duty on the lead agency to take action at any particular time: 95 . . . . 96 (7) Removal of drums, barrels, tanks, or other bulk containers that contain or may contain hazardous substances or pollutants or contaminants--where it will reduce the likelihood of spillage; leakage; exposure to humans, animals, or food chain; or fire or explosion; 97 40 C.F.R. § 300.415 (emphasis added). 98 The question for decision, then, is whether removing the empty drums is not inconsistent with the provisions of 40 C.F.R. § 300.415 set forth above. Absent evidence that there were sufficient residual materials on the drums to constitute a threat to the public health or welfare, removing the empty drums cannot be said to advance or promote the goals of the NCP. However, even if strict logical inconsistency is not what the NCP means, 3 Congress did not say that costs must advance or promote the NCP to be recoverable. The general tenor of the NCP is permissive--the lead agency may take any appropriate action, including those on a list that is expressly not exhaustive and that includes removal of drums that may contain hazardous substances. Arguably, drums that are known to be empty are not drums that may contain hazardous substances. However, the generally permissive nature of the NCP, together with the apparent reasonableness of removing the empty drums, should be decisive. Furthermore, there is no evidence in the record that removing the empty drums raised the costs significantly. There is also no evidence in the record on appeal that an underground tank was removed. Nor is there evidence that the empty drums would have been accepted by an ordinary landfill, or that such disposition would have been less costly than the actual disposition. Accordingly, the decision of the district court as to the amount of the cleanup costs is affirmed.