f
3 " UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
f WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460
MAY 22 iS92
OFFICE OF
SOLID WASTE AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE
OSWER DIRECTIVE # 9202.1-04
MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT: Identification of a Senior Superfund Official for
Addressing Special NPL SJLte-Related Issues
FROM: Don R. Clay
Assistant Administr
TO: Regional Administrators
EPA Regions I - X
Purpose;
To identify a senior Superfund official responsible for
reviewing and addressing specific issues at National Priorities
List (NPL) sites that cannot be resolved at the Regional level,
and to identify criteria for NPL site referrals to this official.
Background;
Within the past six months, several NPL sites with
special issues that could not be resolved solely at the Regional
level have been brought to the attention of EPA Administrator
Reilly. At one of these sites, Industrial Excess Landfill in
Uniontown, Ohio, Mr. Thomas Crumbly of Clean Sites Incorporated
was requested by the Office of Solid ™-*ste and Emergency Response
(OSWER) to undertake a neutral third-party assessment of the
concerns at the site and make recommendations for resolving the
issues. One recommendation from the Clean Sites report was for
EPA to designate a senior career official to address special
issues and problems at NPL sites that go beyond existing Regional
site management mechanisms and empower this official to take
action to resolve these issues and problems. The Administrator
has asked that OSWER implement this recommendation.
OSWER recognizes that certain mechanisms already exist which
trigger Headquarters involvement in nationally significant
incidents or sites. Issues and sites of national significance in
the emergency response program are presently addressed through
the National Incident Coordination Team (NICT). The NICT was
established to coordinate responses to specific issues or
situations of national or international significance that require
special involvement, cooperation, or close coordination at the
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national level, e.g., the Exxon Valdez oil spill incident on
March 24, 1989. Nationally significant removals and emergency
removals which require the expenditure of funds exceeding the
removal or-f-^ri's two miJ1'-^r dollar statutory ceiling also
require Headquarters approval or concurrence.
Certain NPL site issues are also presently elevated to OSWER
for consultation purposes. These consultations provide OSWER
with advance notice and insight on important remedy selection
implementation issues. These issues are addressed in the January
21, 1992, ROD Delegations memo to the Regions and include
containment remedy selections and all remedies estimated to cost
more than thirty million dollars to implement.
It should be noted that these existing mechanisms will
continue and are not affected by this memorandum.
Implementation;
I have appointed Richard J. Guimond, in his capacity as
National Superfund Director, to be the senior career official
responsible for addressing NPL site concerns or issues that he
determines to be of national significance. Special site issues
that canr.et be addressed through the r.crsal lisgicr.al procedures
or at the Headquarters Office Director level in OSWER, due to
special institutional, policy, or technical reasons, should be
referred to Rich Guimond. Rich Guimond will be responsible for
reviewing the issue, taking steps to resolve the concerns, and
coordinating the response. Management of the site and site work
will still be performed by the Region. Only the specific issue
that is referred will be addressed by Rich Guimond and/or the
appropriate EPA officials designated by him. The Region will
cc. ^inu_ '-''• be involved in the .^solution of the specific issue.
To determine if a specific site concern should be deemed
"nationally significant", i.e., Rich determines that the issue
warrants his review and/or response, the site issue should be one
that could not be addressed through normal Regional procedures or
resolved at the Headquarters Orfice Director level in OSWER, and
should meet one or more of the following criteria:
o Concerns significant contamination that crosses
Regional or national boundaries;
o Involves significant national technical or policy
issues where the Region requests Headquarters support
and which could establish a policy modification or
precedent (e.g., concerns over the national process for
radiation sample collection and analysis);
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o Involves national-level coordination with other Federal
agencies in which the Region requests Headquarters
support (e.g., lender liability issues involving the
Federal National Mortgage Association); or
o Receives extraordinary Congressional or constituent
attention that has national implications.
It is anticipated that, nationally, only a few site issues
per year will be elevated to this level of Headquarters
involvement. Elevated issues will be evaluated, and Rich will
coordinate with the Region and appropriate Headquarters offices
on issues which he determines are nationally significant.
OSWER is looking forward to working with the Regions
to implement this mechanism for addressing nationally significant
issues and making the Superfuhd program more effective.
cc: William K. Reilly
Hank Habicht
Gordon Binder
Herb Tate
Rich Guimond
Henry Longest
Bruce Diamond
Tim Fields
Waste Management Division Directors, Regions I-X
Environmental Services Division Directors,
Regions I, VI, VII
Superfund Branch Chiefs, Regions I-X
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