EPA v. WEST DALLAS LEAD SITE - COMMERCIAL METALS, ET AL.

Case summary

1. SECTION 122(G) OF THE COMPREHENSIVE ENVIRONMENTAL RE- SPONSE, COMPENSATION, AND LIABILITY ACT ( CERCLA ), 42 U.S.C. SEC. 9601 ET SEQ. 2. RSR CORPORATION SUPERFUND SITE (WEST DALLAS LEAD SITE) RSR CORPORATION MURMUR CORPORATION MURPH METALS, INC. (QUEMETCO) EAGLE PICHER INDUSTRIES DALLAS HOUSING AUTHORITY COMMERCIAL METALS CITY OF DALLAS 3. THE RSR SITE IS APPROXIMATELY 13.6 SQUARE MILE AREA LO- CATED IN WEST DALLAS, TEXAS. LEAD AND OTHER HEAVY METAL CONTAMINATION ST THE RSR SITE ALLEGEDLY ORIGINATED FROM APPROXIMATELY 50 YEARS OF LEAD SMELTING ACTIVITIES AT THE FORMER RSR CORPORATION SECONDARY LEAD SMELTER LOCATED AT THE HEART OF THE RSR SITE. APPROXIMATELY 17,000 PEOPLE, PREDOMINANTLY MINORITIES, LIVE IN BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL HOUSING AREAS WITHIN THE SITE. EPA IS CON- CERNED WITH ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ISSUES AT THIS SITE, AND ACCORDINGLY, EPA HAS MADE THE ABATEMENT OF CONTAMINA- TION PROBLEMS IN RESIDENTIAL AREAS THE PRIORITY. BECAUSE OF THE LARGE SIZE OF THE RSR SITE AND DIFFERENT AREAS OF CONTAMINATION, EPA HAS DIVIDED THE RSR SITE INTO FIVE OPERABLE UNITS ( OUS ). OU NO. 1 AND 2 REPRESENT THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC HOUSING AREAS. EPA PERFORMED OR OVER- SAW THE PERFORMANCE OF EXTENSIVE REMOVAL ACTIONS AT THESE OUS, AND IN MAY 1995 ISSUED RECORDS OF DECISIONS FOR OU NOS. 1 AND 2 STATING THAT NO FURTHER ACTION WAS NECESSARY TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH, WELFARE AND THE ENVIRONMENT AT THESE OUS. OU NO. 3 CONSISTS OF THREE FORMER DISPOSAL AREAS WHERE RSR SMELTER WASTE ALLEGEDLY WAS DISPOSED. EPA IS IN THE PROCESS OF CONDUCTING A REMEDIAL INVESTIGATION FEASIBILITY STUDY ( FI/FS ) AT THIS OU AND ANTICIPATES ISSUING A REMEDIAL ACTION DECISION IN 1996. OU NO. 4 WILL ADDRESS REMEDIATION OF THE SMELTER PROPERTY AND OU NO. 5 WILL ADDRESS REMEDIATION OF THE ASSOCIATED INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY. EPA ANTICIPATES ISSUING A RECORD OF DECISION OUTLINING THE REMEDIAL ACTION FOR OU NO. 4 IN DEC. 1995 AND ISSUING TO THE PUBLIC A RECOMMENDATION IN A PROPOSED PLAN FOR REMEDIAL ACTION FOR OU NO. 5 IN EARLY 1996. AT THIS TIME EPA HAS INCURRED AND PAID COSTS IN THE AP- PROXIMATE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $22,270,000 AT ALL OUS. THIS FIGURE IS BASED ON A DOCUMENTED COST PACKAGE OF COSTS PAID THROUGH DEC. 31, 1994 AND UNRECONCILED COSTS FROM JAN. 1, 1995 TO SEPT. 3, 1995. EPA ESTIMATES THAT THE COST OF PERFORMING REMEDIES AT OUS 3, 4 AND 5 (REPRESENT- ING EPA FUTURE COSTS) WILL TOTAL AN ADDITIONAL $30 MIL- LION. EPA HAS IDENTIFIED SEVERAL PARTIES WHO ARE POTENTIALLY LIABLE AS OWNERS OR OPERATORS OF THE RSR SITE. THE DALLAS HOUSING AUTHORITY ( DHA ), THE OWNER OF OU NO. 2, EN- TERED INTO AN ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER ON CONSENT AND PERFORMED AND FINANCED A REMEDIAL INVESTIGATION AND REMOVAL ACTION AT OU NO. 2. IN ADDITION, EPA HAS PROVIDED NOTICE OF POTENTIAL LIABLITY TO THE CURRENT OWNER OF THE RSR SMELTER (OUS 4 AND 5), MURMUR CORPORATION ( MURMUR ), AND THE FORMER OWNER/OPERATOR OF THE SMELTER, RSR CORPORATION ( RSR ) AND A RELATED COMPANY, QUEMETCO METALS LIMITED, INC., AND INVITED THEM TO MAKE GOOD FAITH OFFERS TO PERFORM VARIOUS RESPONSE ACTIONS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE AT OU NOS. 1, 4 AND 5. THE COMPANIES DID NOT PRESENT EPA WITH A GOOD FAITH OFFER, AND EPA HAS PERFORMED ALL RESPONSE ACTIONS AT THESE OUS TO DATE WITH FINANCING FROM THE HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE SUPERFUND. ALSO, EPA HAS IDENTIFIED AND NOTIFIED THE CITY OF DALLAS OF I

Defendants (7)

• CITY OF DALLAS
• COMMERCIAL METALSNamed in complaint
• DALLAS HOUSING AUTHORITY
• EAGLE PICHER INDUSTRIES
• MURMUR CORPORATION
• MURPH METALS, INC.
• RSR CORPORATIONNamed in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• MURMUR CORPORATION SITE 3

  2727 NORTH WESTMORELAND, DALLAS, TX, 75247

  Registry ID: 110000619616

Statutes cited

• CERCLA 107A — Cost Recovery

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• US V COMMERCIAL METALS COMPANY, ET AL.entered 1998-05-29

  Primary law: CERCLA

Timeline (6 milestones)

• 1995-05-01Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 1995-12-28PRN Sent
• 1996-12-28Referred To Dept Of Justice
• 1998-05-29Final Order Lodged
• 1998-05-29Final Order Entered
• 1998-05-29Complaint Filed With Court