EPA v. MARINA CLIFF/NORTHWESTERN BARREL

Case summary

THE MARINA CLIFFS SITE CURRENTLY OCCUPIES ROUGHLY 13 ACRES OF VACANT LAND SOUTH OF DREXEL STREET AND EAST OF FIFTH AVENUE ALONG LAKE MICHIGAN IN SOUTH MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN. FROM 1941 THROUGH THE MID-1960S, NORTHWESTERN BARREL DUMPED, WASHED, RECYCLED AND RECONDITIONED BARRELS AT THE SITE. AS A RESULT OF THOSE OPERATIONS, THE SITE BECAME CONTAMINATED WITH HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES INCLUDING POLYCHLORINATED BIPHEN- YLS ( PCBS ), VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS ( VOCX ), PAINT WASTES, CHROMIUM, LEAD, AND OTHER HEAVY METALS. DRUMS, BARRELS, AND DEBRIS WERE ABANDONED IN THE RAVINE AND LAKE BLUFF AREAS OF THE SITE. THE AREA AROUND THE SITE IS HEAVILY POPULATED. IT IS BORDERED ON THE SOUTH AND WEST SIDES BY RESIDENTIAL AREAS (MOSTLY APARTMENTS AND CONDOMINIUMS), ON THE EAST BY LAKE MICHIGAN, AND ON THE NORTH BY SOUTH MILWAUKEE WASTE WATER TREATMENT PLANT IS APPROXIMATELY THREE-QUARTERS OF A MILE OFF-SHORE FROM THE SITE. THE SITE IS NOT ON THE NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST. ON OCTOBER 3, 1995, U.S. EPA ISSUED A UNILATER ADMINISTRA- TIVE ORDER ( 1995 UAO ) TO THE CURRENT OWNERS OF THE SITE AND TO 78 OF THE LARGEST GENERATORS OF MATERIALS DISPOSED OF AT THE SITE. UNDER THAT UAO, A GROUP OF THE GENERATOR PRPS (THE PRP GROUP ) EXCAVATED, STOCKPILED AND DISPOSED OF MORE THAN 10,000 TONS OF CONTAMINATED SOILD AND SLUDGE FROM DISPOSAL PIT AREAS, ALONG WITH MORE THAN 80,000 GALLONS OF WASTEWATER. THESE PARTIES ALSO CONSTRUCTED A PERIMETER FENCE TO HELP SECURE THE CONTAMINATED AREA. THE PRP GROUP IS ALSO CONDUCTING AN ENGINEERING EVALUATION/COST ANALYSIS ( EE/CA ) TO IDENTIFY ALTERNATIVES FOR SITE-WIDE CLEANUP. THE EE/CA IS NEARLY COMPLETE. ALL OF THIS WORK HAS BEEN PERFORMED UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF U.S. EPA AND THE WISCON- SIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES ( WDNR ). AS THEY WORKED ON THE EE/CA STUDY, THE PRP GROUP, U.S. EPA AND WDNR DETERMINED THAT EXCAVATION AND DISPOSAL OF CONTAMI- NATED SOILS AT THE SITE WOULD BE NECESSARY AND COULD BE EXPEDITED. AS A RESULT, ON JULY 20, 1998, U.S. EPA ISSUED A A SECOND UNILATERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER ( 1998 UAO ) TO THE CURRENT OWNERS OF THE SITE AND TO 94 OF THE LARGEST GENERA- TORS OF MATERIALS DISPOSED OF AT THE SITE. UNDER THE 1998 UAO, THE PRP GROUP EXCAVATED AND DISPOSED OF MORE THAN 170,000 TONS OF MATERIALS CONTAINING HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES AND DEBRIS. IN 1998, THE PRP GROUP REACHED A PRIVATE BUYOUT AGREEMENT WITH 78 DE MINIMIS PARTIES THAT HAD RECEIVED THE UAOS. U.S. EPA EXAMINED THE TERMS OF THAT BUYOUT AGREEMENT, WHICH WAS NEGOTIATED AT ARMS LENGTH AND ACCEPTED BY A LARGE MAJORITY OF THE UAO RECIPIENTS, AND BELIEVES THEY ARE FAIR AND APPRO- PRIATE. THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT THEREFORE PROVIDES THESE PARTIES WITH DE MINIMIS PROTECTION WITHOUT REQUIRING ANY FURTHER PAYMENT. THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT ALSO OFFERS TERMS TO THOSE DE MINIMIS PARTIES WHO DECLINED THE PRIVATE BUYOUT AND TO THOSE WHO WERE TOO SMALL TO RECEIVE THE INIATIAL UOAS AND THE PRIVATE BUYOUT PROPOSAL. TO DATE THE PRP GROUP HAS SPENT APPROXIMATELY $9.7 MILLION ON SITE CLEANUP ACTIVITIES. U.S. EPA ESTIMATES THAT THE FUTURE WORK TO BE PERFORMED AT THE SITE MAY COST APPROXI- MATELY $2 MILLION. IN ADDITION, U.S. EPA HAS INCURRED ROUGHLY $1,235,223 IN INVESTIGATION AND OVERSIGHT COSTS THROUGH MARCH 31, 2000, THAT HAVE NOT BEEN REIMBURSED.

Defendants (1)

• MARINA CLIFF/NORTHWESTERN BARRELNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• MARINA CLIFFS NORTHWESTERN BAR

  5TH AVE AND MARINA CLIFF DR, SOUTH MILWAUKEE, WI, 53172

  Registry ID: 110002048427

Statutes cited

• CERCLA 122G — Administrative De Minimis Settlement

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• MARINA CLIFF/NORTHWESTERN BARRELentered 2001-02-07

  Primary law: CERCLA

Timeline (3 milestones)

• 2001-02-07Final Order Issued
• 2001-04-20Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 2002-11-14Amended Administrative Order