[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 88 (Monday, May 6, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 20202-20206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-11208]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 300
[FRL-5467-5]
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan;
National Priorities List
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to Delete the Bio-Ecology Systems Superfund
Site from the National Priorities List and Request for Comments.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 announces
its intent to delete the Bio-Ecology Systems (Bio-Ecology) Superfund
site from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public
comment on this action. The NPL constitutes Appendix B of 40 CFR Part
300 which is the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution
Contingency Plan (NCP), which EPA promulgated pursuant to Section 105
of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act (CERCLA), as amended. EPA and the State of Texas through
the (Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission) (TNRCC) have
determined that all appropriate actions under CERCLA have been
implemented and that no further cleanup is appropriate. Moreover, EPA
and the State have determined that response activities conducted at the
site to date have been protective of public health, welfare, and the
environment.
DATES: The EPA will accept comments concerning its proposal for
deletion for thirty (30) days after publication of this notice in the
Federal Register and a newspaper of record.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Ms. Olivia Rodriguez Balandran,
Community Relations Coordinator, U.S. EPA, Region 6 (6SF-P), 1445 Ross
Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, 1-800-533-3508 or (214) 665-6584.
Information Repositories: Comprehensive information on this site is
available through the EPA, Region 6, Public Docket, located at the EPA,
Region 6, Library Office and is available for viewing from 8:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. The Library
Office address is: U.S. EPA, Region 6, Library, 12th Floor, 1445 Ross
Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, Phone: (214) 665-6424 or 665-6427.
[[Page 20203]]
Background information from the Regional Public Docket is available
for viewing at the Bio-Ecology Systems Superfund Site information
repositories located at:
Grand Prairie City Hall, 317 College Street, Grand Prairie, Texas 75050
Grand Prairie City Library, 901 Conover, Grand Prairie, Texas 75051
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6, Library, 12th Floor,
1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, Phone: (214) 665-6424 or
665-6427
Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, 12118 North IH-35,
Building D, Room 190, Austin, Texas 78753, Phone: (512) 239-2920
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Ernest R. Franke, Remedial Project
Manager (6SF-AT), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6, 1445
Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, Phone: (214) 665-8521.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. National Priorities List (NPL) Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. History and Basis for Intended Site Deletion
I. Introduction
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 announces
its intent to delete the Bio-Ecology Systems Superfund site, Grand
Prairie, Dallas County, Texas, from the National Priorities List (NPL),
which constitutes Appendix B of the National Oil and Hazardous
Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), Code of Federal
Regulations, Title 40 (40 CFR), Part 300, and requests comments on the
proposed deletion. The EPA identifies sites that appear to present a
significant risk to public health, welfare, or the environment, and
maintains the NPL as the list of those sites. Sites on the NPL may be
the subject of remedial actions financed by the Hazardous Substance
Superfund Response Trust Fund (Fund). Pursuant to Section 300.425(e)(3)
of the NCP, any site deleted from the NPL remains eligible for Fund-
financed remedial actions if conditions at the site warrant such
action.
The EPA will accept comments concerning this proposal for thirty
(30) days after publication of this notice in the Federal Register and
a newspaper of record.
Section II of this notice explains the criteria for deleting sites
from the NPL. Section III discusses procedures that EPA is using for
this action. Section IV discusses the history of this site and explains
how the site meets the deletion criteria.
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
The NCP establishes the criteria that the Agency uses to delete
sites from the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e)(1), sites may
be deleted from or recategorized on the NPL where no further response
is appropriate. In making a determination to delete a release site from
the NPL, EPA shall 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; or
(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, taking remedial measures is not appropriate.
Prior to deciding to delete a site from the NPL, EPA must determine
that the remedy, or existing site conditions at sites where no action
is required, is protective of public health, welfare, and the
environment.
Deletion of a site from the NPL does not preclude eligibility for
subsequent Fund-financed actions if future site conditions warrant such
actions. Section 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP states that Fund-financed
actions may be taken at sites that have been deleted from the NPL.
III. Deletion Procedures
Upon determination that at least one of the criteria described in
Sec. 300.425(e)(1) has been met, EPA may formally begin deletion
procedures. The following procedures were used for the intended
deletion of this site:
(1) EPA Region 6 has recommended deletion and has prepared the
relevant documents.
(2) The State of Texas has concurred with the deletion decision.
(3) Concurrent with this National Notice of Intent to Delete, a
local notice will be published in local newspapers and shall be
distributed to appropriate federal, state, and local officials, and
other interested parties. This local notice announces a thirty (30) day
public comment period on the deletion package, which starts two weeks
from the date of the notice.
(4) The Region has made all relevant documents available in the
Regional Office and local site and State of Texas information
repositories.
These procedures have been completed for the Bio-Ecology Systems
Superfund site. This Federal Register notice, and a concurrent notice
in the local newspaper in the vicinity of the site, announce the
initiation of a 30-day public comment period and the availability for
review of the Notice of Intent to Delete. The public is asked to
comment on EPA's intention to delete the site from the NPL; all
critical documents needed to evaluate EPA's decision are included in
the information repository and deletion docket.
Upon completion of the 30-day public comment period, EPA Region 6
will evaluate these comments before the final decision to delete. The
Region will prepare a Responsiveness Summary, to address concerns
raised by the comments received during the public comment period. The
Responsiveness Summary will be made available to the public at the
information repositories. Members of the public are welcome to contact
the EPA Regional Office to obtain a copy of the Responsiveness Summary,
when available. If EPA still determines that deletion from the NPL is
appropriate after receiving public comments, a Final Notice of Deletion
will be published in the Federal Register. However, it is not until a
Notice of Deletion is published in the Federal Register that the site
would be actually deleted.
IV. History and Basis for Intended Site Deletion
The following summary provides the Agency's rationale for deleting
the Bio-Ecology Systems Superfund site from the NPL.
The Bio-Ecology Systems (Bio-Ecology) site is an 11.2 acre site
located at 4100 East Jefferson Avenue in Grand Prairie, Dallas County,
Texas.(Figure 1) It is approximately 5 miles south of Interstate
Highway 30 between Fort Worth and Dallas. Bio-Ecology is a former waste
disposal facility which occupied a majority of the 11.2 acre area. Bio-
Ecology is bounded in all directions by privately-held property and
also on the north, east, and south by Mountain Creek. Mountain Creek
Lake and the Trinity River are located approximately \3/4\ mile
southwest and 2\1/2\ miles north of Bio-Ecology, respectively. Bio-
Ecology is located within the 100-year floodplain of Mountain Creek
(Trinity River Basin) and has been extensively flooded on at least two
occasions during facility operations (June 1973 & June 1974).
Bio-Ecology was a Class I industrial solid waste management
facility,
[[Page 20204]]
originally authorized by a permit issued by the Texas Water Quality
Board (TWQB) on April 24, 1972. Permitted activities included the
following: (1) incineration of combustible liquids, slurries, and
sludges (subject to Texas Air Control Board standards for odors and
emissions); (2) chemical treatment of acids, caustics, and other waste
chemical solutions, including those containing heavy metals; (3)
biological oxidation of waste waters resulting from separation of mud-
water and oil-water mixtures and from chemical treatment of other
wastes; and (4) a modified landfill of solids resulting from the other
treatment processes (Figure 2). Bio-Ecology was actively operated from
June 1972 through June 1978.
Operations at the site were characterized by frequent litigation
filed by the Texas Department of Water Resources (TDWR) and its
predecessor agency, the Texas Water Quality Board. Both agencies had
attempted to force the company to comply with permit standards and all
applicable Federal and State laws and regulations. During the 6-year
operation of the facility, Bio-Ecology was cited for a number of major
violations including the following: (1) Construction of new facilities
(i.e., retaining basins) without proper authorization; (2) discharge of
wastewater into Mountain Creek; (3) allowing liquid levels in holding
basins to reach the brink without any freeboard; (4) storage of drums,
several times beyond the permit maximum (200 drums); and (5) several
incidents of oil spills.
On or about June 3-4, 1973, approximately 5 inches of rain fell on
the site during a 24-hour period. Approximately 90 percent of the
facility was inundated. State inspections of the site observed flooding
in several storage basins and wastewater runoff into Mountain Creek.
The site was to have been designed to adequately protect against a 24-
hour, 25-year rainfall. However, the rainfall during June 3-4, 1973 was
of less than a 25-year frequency. Orders were issued by the Texas
courts on July 6, 1973, and March 24, 1977, requiring Bio-Ecology to
comply with its permit and remedy the above mentioned violations. On
June 13, 1978, Bio-Ecology filed for bankruptcy under the provisions of
Chapter XI of the Bankruptcy Act.
After payment of all priority creditors, the TDWR was able to
recover $28,870 from Bio-Ecology for cleanup activities. In December
1979, a contract was made between TDWR and the Owner/Operator to
partially close the site. The contract required the following: (1) all
open receiving basins and pits were drained; (2) all containerized
wastes were buried on site and covered with a pelletized lime blanket;
and (3) sludges in various lagoons and landfills were moved to
consolidate them on-site. Due to constraints in funding, a number of
metal tanks containing oils, solvents, and paint sludges remained at
the site. Approximately $34,000 (including the $28,870 obtained from
Bio-Ecology bankruptcy) was expended during the period December 12,
1979, through February 15, 1980, for the partial site cleanup.
Bio-Ecology was proposed for the National Priorities List (NPL) on
December 30, 1982, and then promulgated on September 8, 1983, with a
Hazard Ranking System (HRS) score of 35.06.
Since Bio-Ecology was proposed for the NPL, it became eligible for
funding under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980. In November 1981, an application
for a Cooperative Agreement (CA) for a Remedial Investigation (RI) and
Feasibility Study (FS) at the site was filed by TDWR. The CA between
EPA and the State of Texas was approved on April 12, 1982. An award in
the amount of $328,000 was authorized to conduct a State-lead RI/FS.
The State of Texas, in turn, awarded a contract to Woodward-Clyde
Consultants (WCC) to perform the RI/FS. The RI included a hydrologic
analysis, a stratigraphic analysis, a hydrogeologic analysis and a
geochemical analysis. The results of these analyses are as follows.
The hydrologic analysis showed the site to be poorly drained and
subject to surface run-off, erosion, and flooding. Approximately 75
percent of the site was determined to be within the 100-year
floodplain.
The stratigraphic analysis identified four subsurface strata within
the upper 60 feet at the site. The uppermost stratum from the surface
to about 20 feet in depth consists of modern alluvial deposits from the
meander deposition of Mountain Creek on the north, east, and south of
the site. These modern alluvial deposits are pervious deposits capable
of transmitting water vertically and laterally and are thus subject to
infiltration by rainfall and high flood waters of Mountain Creek.
Underlying the modern alluvial deposits are older alluvial deposits
from flood basin deposition of the Mountain Creek valley. These
deposits are primarily high plasticity clays with occasional beds of
low plasticity clays. The older flood basin soils contain fissures and
cracks caused by cyclic shrinkage and swelling. The older alluvial
deposits, therefore, act as a leaky aquitard capable of transmitting
fluids vertically. These deposits vary in thickness from 25-40 feet
across the site. Below this stratum is about a five-foot layer of
remnant quaternary gravel deposits which is the first representative
water-bearing aquifer encountered. Beneath the gravel deposits is about
a 200-foot thick section of the Eagle Ford shale. This shale is for all
practical purposes, impervious, and overlies the Woodbine Aquifer. The
Woodbine Aquifer is used as a drinking water supply for the City of
Grand Prairie.
The groundwater flow, at the time of investigation, was generally
from northwest to southeast across the site in the remnant gravel
aquifer. Groundwater encountered was also under an artesian head of
about 15 feet (measured from the older alluvial deposits). This aquifer
was slightly contaminated in the vicinity of the site and was subject
to contamination from wastes at the site migrating through the
secondary structure of older alluvial deposits. Groundwater is present
in the upper alluvial deposits at water levels below the level of
surface water in the adjacent stream channel and nearby pond northwest
of the site. These surface waters are recharging the alluvium at the
site. A search of drinking-water well records was conducted during the
investigation and did not reveal anyone using the shallow aquifer as a
drinking water source.
The geochemical analysis showed that surface contamination at the
site was primarily restricted to on-site locations and to off-site
drainage areas. On-site surface contamination was extensive for metals,
cyanide, and organics. Composite samples from the site indicated high
concentrations of lead (1,100 ppm), arsenic (210 ppm), and cyanide
(1,030 ppm). Analysis also indicated the presence of many organic
contaminants including toluene (19 ppm), trichloroethylene (1000 ppm),
benzene (1.5 ppm), methylene chloride (.087 ppm), and naphthalene (240
ppm). Off-site contamination did not appear to be severe at the time of
the field investigation. Likewise, subsurface contamination appeared to
be primarily restricted to waste deposits and their vicinity.
There were estimated to be approximately 40,000 cubic yards (CY) of
wastes and highly contaminated soils at the site (Figure 3). The site
work for the investigation was completed in January 1983. More detail
of the RI may be found in WCC's Site Investigation Report dated April
1983.
[[Page 20205]]
The FS began in February 1983. The FS conducted by WCC developed
the following objectives based on the results of the RI.
Remove above ground structures, dispose of contents, and
treat the associated northern off-site contaminated soil area;
Raise the site above the 100 year floodplain;
Provide adequate site drainage;
Treat special wastes (PCB's in an on-site tank, buried
drums and containers including medical vials and laboratory chemicals,
areas of high arsenic concentrations, and areas of cyanide presence);
and
Control of off-site migration of wastes by surface and
subsurface migration pathways to surface and subsurface waters and
adjacent land areas in order to mitigate future impacts on these target
receptors (no significant air migration problems were detected during
the RI).
More details of the FS may be found in WCC's Remedial Alternatives
Analysis Report dated July 1983.
An Initial Remedial Measure (IRM) was concluded at the Bio-Ecology
site in September 1983. The IRM cleanup activities included the
following:
1. Remove and dispose of approximately 80,000 gallons of hazardous
liquids and sludges. (Organics, PCB's, Heavy Metals)
2. Decontaminate and remove the 15 storage tanks and other surface
structures.
3. Remove and dispose of about 35 cubic yards of contaminated soil.
4. Surface cleanup. (Miscellaneous debris, site grading, etc.)
This action was deemed necessary to comply with the National
Contingency Plan (NCP), with regard to hazardous substances in drums,
barrels, tanks, or other bulk storage containers above ground and
contaminated soils at or near the surface which posed a threat to
public health or the environment.
The Record of Decision (ROD) was signed by Lee Thomas, Assistant
Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response at EPA
Headquarters on June 6, 1984. The description of the selected remedy
was:
Raise the elevation of the site above the 100-year flood
plain.
Construct an on-site disposal cell with synthetic liner
and a leachate collection system.
Construct a final cover and liner and leachate collection
and removal system in accordance with standards promulgated under 40
CFR Part 264 (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) and applicable
guidance.
Stabilize the waste and place in on-site cell.
Construct a fence with warning signs.
Install a groundwater monitoring system in accordance with
standards promulgated under 40 CFR part 264.
The ROD stated that the groundwater monitoring program was to
determine the existence of any present groundwater contamination
outside the containment area; however, the decision to proceed with the
cleanup did not encompass remedial action with respect to any
groundwater contamination that might be discovered. If such ground
water contamination was found, appropriate remedial response would be
evaluated, and a future determination regarding the compliance of the
response with Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
requirements would be made. If no existing contamination was found, the
monitoring program was to ensure the continued effectiveness of the
selected containment remedy. The State of Texas was consulted and
agreed with the remedy.
A Cooperative Agreement (CA), i.e., a grant, was awarded by EPA to
the Texas Department of Water Resources (TDWR), now known as the Texas
Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC), on May 12, 1986, to
fund the Remedial Action Construction Contract and Oversight Engineer
Contract. The $4,143,790 provided to TDWR through the CA was
supplemented by $2,788,000 provided by the Air Force under terms of an
Inter-Agency Agreement as part of a settlement with EPA to pay for
their contribution of wastes to the site when it was operating. Bids
for the construction contract were solicited and Rollins Environmental
Services (RES) was awarded the contract on March 16, 1987 as low bidder
at a contract cost of $3,789,537. WCC was retained as TDWR's oversight
engineer. The Notice to Proceed was issued to RES on April 30, 1987 and
the contractor mobilized to the site on May 4, 1987.
Construction work proceeded through the spring and early summer of
1987 with excavation and temporary stockpiling of waste materials as
the RCRA cell was being constructed. It was soon discovered that the
volume of waste originally estimated in the contract document (54,300
cubic yards) would be exceeded and the RCRA cell needed to be enlarged.
This was accomplished through change order at a cost of approximately
$294,000. The final volume of soil placed in the cell was 85,332 cubic
yards, an increase of approximately 31,000 cubic yards more than
originally anticipated. This 57% increase in soil to be excavated,
moved, stabilized, and placed in the cell (as well as increased
dewatering costs) resulted in the largest change order increase in the
project, at a cost of $1,227,000. This increase is documented in change
order number 7 and more details about these construction activities can
be found in WCC'S August 1988 Final Construction Report (pages 19 &
20). Five other relatively minor change orders were approved for a
total final construction contract cost (original, plus seven change
orders) of $5,317,852 or an increase of 40% beyond the original
contract cost. The RCRA cell was completed and closed in April of 1988
and the prefinal inspection of the substantially completed work was
held June 27, 1988.
The final inspection of the completed work was held August 31,
1988, and a Certificate of Completion was issued.
In April 1993 a Close Out Report was prepared in which EPA, in
consultation with the State of Texas (TNRCC), determined that all
appropriate response actions required to ensure the protectiveness of
human health and the environment at the Bio-Ecology Systems Superfund
site had been implemented.
Pursuant to 40 CFR 300.510 of the NCP, the State (TNRCC) has
assumed all responsibility for Operation and Maintenance (O&M) at this
site. The Operational & Functional (O&F) period activities from 1988 to
1993 are documented in Section XI of the April 1993 Close Out Report
and Section VI of the Summary of the O&M Sampling Events contained in
the Five-Year Review dated November 1994. The findings of both the
Close Out Report and the Five-Year Review support the determination
that there is not a serious leak of the top or bottom liner systems at
Bio-Ecology and that the site is operational and functional.
Significant contamination has not been found in the groundwater at the
site to date, although there have been a few sporadic findings of
individual constituents in various wells at levels of concern that
necessitate continued monitoring and evaluation. Continued pumping of
leachate from the vault will be required throughout the O&M period
until the system is pumped dry, and continued monitoring of the
groundwater will also be needed. These activities are required by the
O&M plan being implemented by TNRCC.
The Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR) issued
a Site Review and Update (SRU) report for the Bio-Ecology Systems
Superfund Site on March 3, 1993. The SRU concluded that, ``The waste is
inaccessible; it is enclosed in a hazardous waste land fill.
[[Page 20206]]
It was concluded that the site is not a public health threat to area
residents; the area residents are not within one-half mile of the
site.'' No further actions or evaluations were recommended.
Hazardous substances encapsulated in the cell on the site, however,
are above health-based levels that do not allow for unlimited use of
and unrestricted access to the consolidation cell area. Therefore, EPA
conducted a statutory five-year review in November of 1994, and the
next scheduled review will be in November 1999, pursuant to OSWER
Directive 9355.7-02, ``Structure and Components of Five-Year Reviews.''
Based on the successful encapsulation of hazardous substances in
the consolidation cell, the results of O&M monitoring to date, and
ATSDR's review, EPA has determined that the remedy is protective and no
further response action is necessary. This is consistent with current
EPA policy as discussed on page 66601 of the December 24, 1991 Federal
Register, 40 CFR Part 300. State-funded O&M and EPA-funded Five-Year
Reviews will continue in the future, but site deletion should proceed
since applicable deletion criteria have been satisfied.
EPA, with the concurrence of the State of Texas, has determined
that all appropriate Fund-financed responses under CERCLA at the Bio-
Ecology Systems Superfund Site have been completed, and that no further
cleanup by responsible parties is appropriate. Moreover, EPA and the
State of Texas have determined that remedial actions conducted at the
site to date have been protective of public health, welfare, and the
environment.
Dated: April 9, 1996.
Jane Saginaw,
Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 96-11208 Filed 5-3-96; 8:45 am]
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