Proposed Rule2021-19449
Proposed Deletion From the National Priorities List
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 14, 2021
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is issuing a proposed rule to delete the Beckman Instruments site from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comments on this proposed action. The NPL, promulgated pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). The EPA and the state, through its designated state agency, have determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed. However, this deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51045-51047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19449]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300
[EPA-HQ-SFUND-2021-0485; FRL-8922-01-OLEM]
Proposed Deletion From the National Priorities List
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is issuing a
proposed rule to delete the Beckman Instruments site from the National
Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comments on this proposed
action. The NPL, promulgated pursuant to the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of
1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous
Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). The EPA and the state,
through its designated state agency, have determined that all
appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed. However,
this deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund.
DATES: Comments regarding this proposed action must be submitted on or
before October 14, 2021.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under the
Docket Identification number included in Table 1 in the Supplementary
Information section of this document. Submit your comments, identified
by the appropriate Docket ID number, by one of the following methods:
<bullet> <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Follow online instructions
for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or
removed from <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>. The EPA may publish any comment received
to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will
generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of
the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing
system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment
policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general
guidance on making effective comments, please visit <a href="http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets">http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</a>.
<bullet> Email: Table 2 in the Supplementary Information section of
this document provides an email address to submit public comments for
the proposed deletion action.
Instructions: Direct your comments to the Docket Identification
number included in Table 1 in the Supplementary Information section of
this document. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be
included in the public docket without change and may be made available
online at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, including any personal
information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed
to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> or email. The <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> website
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an email comment directly to EPA without
going through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, your email address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment
[[Page 51046]]
that is placed in the public docket and made available on the internet.
If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include
your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and
with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due
to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses.
Docket: EPA has established a docket for this action under the
Docket Identification included in Table 1 in the Supplementary
Information section of this document. All documents in the docket are
listed on the <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> website. Although listed in
the index, some information is not publicly available, i.e.,
Confidential Business Information or other information whose disclosure
is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted
material, is not placed on the internet and will be publicly available
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are
available either electronically through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> or
in hard copy at the corresponding Regional Records Center. Location,
address, and phone number of the Regional Records Centers follows.
Regional Records Center:
<bullet> Region 9 (AZ, CA, HI, NV, AS, GU, MP), email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c193f8b3a4a2aeb3a5b281a4b1a0efa6aeb7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="94c6ade6f1f7fbe6f0e7d4f1e4f5baf3fbe2">[email protected]</span></a>, 415/947-8717.
The EPA is temporarily suspending Regional Records Centers for
public visitors to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19.
Information in these repositories, including the deletion docket, has
not been updated with hardcopy or electronic media. For further
information and updates on EPA Docket Center services, please visit us
online at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets</a>.
The EPA continues to carefully and continuously monitor information
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), local area
health departments, and our Federal partners so that we can respond
rapidly as conditions change regarding COVID.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
<bullet> Holly Hadlock, U.S. EPA Region 9, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#531b32373f3c30387d3b3c3f3f2a133623327d343c25"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5d153c3931323e367335323131241d382d3c733a322b">[email protected]</span></a>,
415/972-3171.
<bullet> Chuck Sands, U.S. EPA Headquarters, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f487959a9087da979c9586989187b4918495da939b82"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="91e2f0fff5e2bff2f9f0e3fdf4e2d1f4e1f0bff6fee7">[email protected]</span></a>,
703/603-8857.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Intended Partial Site Deletion
I. Introduction
EPA is issuing a proposed rule to delete the Beckman Instruments
site from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public
comments on this proposed action. The NPL constitutes Appendix B of 40
CFR part 300 which is the NCP, which EPA created under section 105 of
the CERCLA statute of 1980, as amended. EPA maintains the NPL as those
sites that appear to present a significant risk to public health,
welfare, or the environment. Sites on the NPL may be the subject of
remedial actions financed by the Hazardous Substance Superfund (Fund).
As described in 40 CFR 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, a site deleted from
the NPL remains eligible for Fund-financed remedial action if future
conditions warrant such actions.
EPA will accept comments on the proposal to partially delete this
site for thirty (30) 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 of this document discusses procedures
that EPA is using for this action. Section IV of this document
discusses the site proposed for deletion and demonstrates how it meets
the deletion criteria, including reference documents with the rationale
and data principally relied upon by the EPA to determine that the
Superfund response is complete.
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
The NCP establishes the criteria that EPA uses to delete sites from
the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), sites may be deleted
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making such a
determination pursuant to 40 CFR 300.425(e), EPA will consider, in
consultation with the State, 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 Fund-financed response under CERCLA has 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,
the taking of remedial measures is not appropriate.
Pursuant to CERCLA section 121(c) and the NCP, EPA conducts five-
year reviews to ensure the continued protectiveness of remedial actions
where hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants remain at a
site above levels that allow for unlimited use and unrestricted
exposure. EPA conducts such five-year reviews even if a site is deleted
from the NPL. EPA may initiate further action to ensure continued
protectiveness at a deleted site if new information becomes available
that indicates it is appropriate. Whenever there is a significant
release from a site deleted from the NPL, the deleted site may be
restored to the NPL without application of the hazard ranking system.
III. Deletion Procedures
The following procedures apply to the deletion of the site in this
proposed rule:
(1) EPA consulted with the respective state before developing this
proposed action for deletion.
(2) EPA has provided the state 30 working days for review of this
proposed action prior to publication of it today.
(3) In accordance with the criteria discussed above, EPA has
determined that no further response is appropriate.
(4) The state, through their designated state agency, has concurred
with the proposed deletion action.
(5) Concurrently, with the publication of this proposed action
deletion in the Federal Register, a notice is being published in two
major local newspapers, the Porterville Recorder, and the Noticiero
Semanal. The newspapers announce the 30-day public comment period
concerning the proposed action for deletion.
(6) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the proposed
deletion in the deletion docket, made these items available for public
inspection, and copying at the Regional Records Center identified
above.
If comments are received within the 30-day comment period on this
document, EPA will evaluate and respond accordingly to the comments
before making a final decision to delete the site. If necessary, EPA
will prepare a Responsiveness Summary to address any significant public
comments received. After the public comment period, if EPA determines
it is still appropriate to delete the site, the EPA will publish a
final Notice of Deletion in the Federal Register. Public notices,
public submissions and copies of the Responsiveness Summary, if
prepared, will be made available to interested parties and included in
the site information repositories listed above.
Deletion of a site from the NPL does not itself create, alter, or
revoke any
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individual's rights or obligations. Deletion of a site from the NPL
does not in any way alter EPA's right to take enforcement actions, as
appropriate. The NPL is designed primarily for informational purposes
and to assist EPA management. Section 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, should future conditions warrant such
actions.
IV. Basis for Full Site or Partial Site Deletion
The site to be deleted from the NPL, the location of the site, and
docket number with information including reference documents with the
rationale and data principally relied upon by the EPA to determine that
the Superfund response is complete is specified in Table 1. The NCP
permits activities to occur at a deleted site or that media or parcel
of a partially deleted site, including operation and maintenance of the
remedy, monitoring, and five-year reviews. These activities for the
site are entered in Table 1, if applicable, under Footnote such that; 1
= site has continued operation and maintenance of the remedy, 2 = site
receives continued monitoring, and 3 = site five-year reviews are
conducted.
Table 1
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Site name City/county, state Type Docket no. Footnote
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Beckman Instruments.............. Porterville, CA..... Full............ EPA-HQ-SFUND-2021-0 ................
485.
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Table 2 includes information concerning whether the full site is
proposed for deletion from the NPL or a description of the area, media
or Operable Units (OUs) of the NPL site proposed for partial deletion
from the NPL, and an email address to which public comments may be
submitted if the commenter does not comment using <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Table 2
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Full site deletion
(full) or media/
Site name parcels/ Email address for
description for public comments
partial deletion
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Beckman Instruments............. Full.............. <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#bcf4ddd8d0d3dfd792d4d3d0d0c5fcd9ccdd92dbd3ca"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="88c0e9ece4e7ebe3a6e0e7e4e4f1c8edf8e9a6efe7fe">[email protected]</span></a>.
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EPA maintains the NPL as the list of sites that appear to present a
significant risk to public health, welfare, or the environment.
Deletion from the NPL does not preclude further remedial action.
Whenever there is a significant release from a site deleted from the
NPL, the deleted site may be restored to the NPL without application of
the hazard ranking system. Deletion of a site from the NPL does not
affect responsible party liability in the unlikely event that future
conditions warrant further actions.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Chemicals,
Hazardous substances, Hazardous waste, Intergovernmental relations,
Natural resources, Oil pollution, Penalties, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water pollution control, Water
supply.
Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; E.O.
13626, 77 FR 56749, 3 CFR, 2013 Comp., p. 306; E.O. 12777, 56 FR
54757, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp., p. 351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR 2923, 3 CFR,
1987 Comp., p. 193.
Dated: September 2, 2021.
Larry Douchand,
Office Director, Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology
Innovation.
[FR Doc. 2021-19449 Filed 9-13-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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