EPA v. KOCHER DUMP SUPERFUND SITE

Case summary

On August 13, 2015 EPA signed a CERCLA 122(h)(1) settlement with the Town of Bennington, Vermont for the Former Kocher Dump Superfund Site The Former Kocher Dump was a Town-owned landfill that had been closed in the 1970s and converted to a Town-owned park. An EPA removal action, starting in July 2012, confirmed the presence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), metals and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in soil and sediment and the presence of VOCs, SVOCs and metals in groundwater. Local residents, including children from an abutting school, crossed the Site regularly through areas of exposed contamination. Prior to EPA implementing a cleanup plan for the Site, the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (?VTANR?) requested, and EPA subsequently agreed, that VTANR would take over the cleanup of the Site under the State?s authority. The Town has since conducted State-approved cleanup actions and monitoring at the Site. Under the settlement, the Town will reimburse part of EPA?s response costs through payments in three installments, including interest, totaling $174,000, to the EPA Hazardous Substance Superfund. The Settlement Agreement also requires the Town to comply with any Order or Request by the State of Vermont to carry out response work at the Site under State supervision.

Defendants (1)

• Town of Bennington VTNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• KOCHER DUMP SUPERFUND SITE

  MEMORY LANE, BENNINGTON, VT, 05201

  Registry ID: 110064695245

Statutes cited

• CERCLA 107A — Cost Recovery
• CERCLA 122H — Administrative Cost Recovery Settlement

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• KOCHER DUMP SUPERFUND SITEentered 2015-08-13

  Primary law: CERCLA

Timeline (3 milestones)

• 2015-08-13Final Order Issued
• 2015-09-03Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 2015-12-01Enforcement Action Closed