Uratad States	Office o< Sodd Waste	PuMceOon 8202.1 -03
Environmental Prelection	and Emergency Response	January 1993
Agency	(OS-100)
mPPA smart moves in superfund -
REVITALIZATION ONE YEAR LATER
Penodc Bcdotm
SuporlrwJ RavitabsMion OHoa	Volume 1, Nuniier 3
It has been a year since EPA announced that it would take
aggressive action lo revitalize the Superfund program. The
goal has been to make the Superfund program more effective,
efficient, and equitable. Since then, many important changes
have laken place. Regional Decision Teams are being formed
to make best use of our cleanup authorities to rapidly reduce
risks. Actions are being taken to improve the ways we manage
our contractors. Enforcement activities arc being starred earlier
witb an eye to improving the information Sow to responsible
parties.
Change is in the air. We feel u; we hear about u constant;-,
There are internal activities within the Superfund program that
tell us that this is not business as usual within Superfund.
Priorities are changing. Emphasis is moving from "pipeline"
progress to construction completions. Stales have been brought
in to enlighten and inform The Regions have been canvassed
for good ideas and lessons learned. EPA regional offices
convened more than 2,000 public meetings tvear Superfund
sites last year, distributed more than 6,000 different Fact
Sheets, and awarded S5 4 million in Technical Assistance
Grants to community groups at more than 100 sites Public
forums are being held throughout the nation to solicit
suggestions on how to make further improvements.
Regional and Headquarters personnel this year have begun the
difficult process of changing the way we do business. Thirty-
two pilot projects have been initiated across the nation to test
different aspects of the reviializauon etfort The response
program ts being streamlined, site assessments are being
performed more efficiently. There is a greater emphasis on
Cleanup actions Cleanup construction projects are underway
or have been completed at over one halt ot the 1.236 National
Priorities List (NPL) sites
The purpose of this bulletin is to highlight som; of our
accomplishments during this Gist year of revitalization.
NPL CONSTRUCTION COMPLETIONS
Fiscal year 1992 saw construction complenons for sites on the
NPL more than double to a total of 149 sites The sites are
located throughout the nanon. and represent a wide spectrum
of problems and solutions The number of completions jumped
REVITALIZATION ACTIVITIES
EFFECTIVENESS
NPL Construction Completions
Accelerating Cleaaup/SACM
Risk Assessment/Risk Management
EFFICIENCY
Long-Term Contracting Strategy
ARCS Contracts Management
Contract Laboratory Program
EQUITY
Enforcement Policies
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Success Stories
Public Forums
State Meetings
due to strong national and regional leadership and a lot of hard
work by staff across the country. Our ability to significantly
increase the number of completions also was partially due|to
the significant amount of groundwork and evaluation already
completed at some o' these sites. Our goal for fiscal year
1993 is 200 construction completions...an average of one
completion a week' We are on our way wiih a total of 155
construction completions at the end of the &rst quarter of this
fiscal year.
ACCELERATING CLEANUP
To speed up the Superfund process, EPA is rethinking the way
sites are evaluated and addressed. The goal is to improve the
rate at which nsks are reduced by creating greater flexibility
for taking quicker acnons to reduce nsks, reducing
duplicative activities to improve response efficiency, and
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applying lessons learned in selecting remedies and setting soil
cleanup levels.
Supcrfund Accelerated Cleanup Model
(SACM)
•	Regional Decision Teams
•	Early Acaors that use both removal and
remedial response authorities
•	Early enforcement and potentially
responsible party (PRP) search efforts
•	Early community and State involvement
•	Improved communications and more
realistic expectations for longer-term actions
such as groundwater restoration
•	Greater efficiency in the site assessment
process
SACM Ov»<-v«w
In March 1992, EPA announced a new process to streamline
Supcrfund cleanups -- SACM (Superfund Accelerated Cleanup
Model). SACM lays out a formula that merges the quick
action of the removal program with the cleanup capabilities of
the remedial program, while maintaining the integrity of
both programs. "Enforcement First" is still bemg emphasized
in SACM.
SACM is in its pilot stage The rules that govern Superfund
response actions will continue to evolve as Regions implement
the principles of the SACM paradigm and discover what «""ks
and what doesn't There is much more work to be done, but
much has been accomplished during the past year
•	Thirteen pilots are currently underway to test SACM.
including ihe 'lightning ROD" pilots in Region 6 and
pilots in Regions 2 and 8 to test combining the site
assessment stages of the response action
•	Regional Decision Teams are being formed in most
Regions to begin to address sites in a comprehensive
manner
Presumptive Remedies
EPA is making better use of past experience in cleaning Lp
Superfund sites. Instead of evaluating a dozen poter
remedies at every site, EPA will identify two or three time,
that have been selected historically at certain types of sites,
such as woodtreater sites or municipal landfills. In this way,
data collected will be targeted at a limited number of
presumptive remedies, and feasibility studies can be
completed (aster and at a lower cost.
Much has been accomplished this year in the area of
presumptive remedies:
•	Preliminary guidance on presumptive remedies for
woodtreater sites has been completed and is currently
being circulated for comment
•	Guidance is underway for presumptive remedies for
solvent-contaminated sites, municipal landfills, and
lead-acid battery sites.
•	EPA is looking into ways to use innovative
technologies along with presumptive remedies, and
wants to improve State and public interaction at sites
with presumptive remedies.
In addition, the presumptive remedy concept is being tested in
Region 9 through the use of "plug-in" RODs, and in Regior
for sites contaminated with PCBs, as well as coal gasification
sites and grain storage sites
Soil Cleanup Levels
Establishing cleanup standards for chemicals commonly found
at Superfund sites can streamline site risk assessments and save
time and money An EPA Workgroup is currently focusing
etforts on 30 commonly-found chemicals, and plans to expand
the list to about 100 chemicals before its work is complete
Initial nsk-based levels for the 30 chemicals address direct
contact threats resulting from chrome exposure via inhalanon
and ingestion in soil.
• Draft list of nsk-based levels for 30 chemicals was
circulated on March 31, 1992;
Analysis of past RODs and background levels was
completed in June 1992;
The final report is currently being prepared on soil
cleanup levels for 30 common chemical contaminants
in soil, stressing consistency between Federal
Superfund and RCRA hazardous waste programs
• Annual planning tools (STARS and SCAPS) are
being revised to reOect ihe new flexibility in regional
responses, and Headquarters is coordinating with On-
Scene Coordinators (OSCs) and Remedial Project
Managers (RPMs) to disseminate informanon about
how best to implement SACM
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RISK ASSESSMENT/RISK MANAGEMENT
Risk Assessment
One of the recommendations of the 30-day Study was that the
Science Advisory Board (SAB) review the Risk Assessment
Guidance for Superfund to ensure consistency and
reasonableness in the underlying assumptions that may
significantly affect the calculation of the perceived risks at
Superfund sites. In April 1992, the SAB initiated tts review;
a Snal report is anticipated shortly.
Risk Management
Some of the most difficult issues in the Superfund program fall
under the heading "risk management" Issues such as "how
clean is clean?" arc addressed at every sue and have significant
equity and efficiency implicaoons. The selection of final
remediation levels at a site hinges directly on the assumpnons
made about future land use — residential, industrial - and site
access. How much importance should be placed on current
land use or historical land use? Local governments often
have the best understanding of the value of specific parcels of
land in a community, but they often do not have the advantage
of a nanonal perspective m selecting the optimal remedy for a
local sue.
Headquarters and regional Waste Directors met on June 30,
1992 to discuss major r.sk management issues, and additional
meetings are planned with State agencies to continue the
dialogue. Policy directives are being developed to provide
guidance to RPMs on difficult risk management issues, such as
future land use and groundwater remediation time frames
IMPROVING CONTRACTS MANAGEMENT
The Agency has taken important steps to improve contracting
in Superfund. including the development and implementation
of the Long-Term Contracting Strategy (LTCS) The LTCS is
built on several key pnncipals (L) support for the SACM
"One Program" approach to 5ite assessment, enforcement, and
cleanup; (2) enhancement of compennve opportunities for
small and disadvantaged businesses, and (3) greater regional
delegation of responsibility for the contracts
ARCS Contracts Management
The Agency also is engaged in extensive efforts to enhance the
management and performance of the Alternative Remedial
Contract Strategy (ARCS) contracts The primary focus is on
ensuring that Superfund ARCS contracts are managed
efficiently (e g , contract administrative costs arc minimized),
and that contractors provide outstanding support to the
program Different aspects of contract management are being
reviewed, including ihe proper application of the award fee
process to ensure that the range of the award fees more
accurately reflects performance, and "bad" performers lose
opportunity to do additional work. The box below highlights
several of our accomplishments to date in the area of
improving ARCS contract management and administration.
	
ARCS CONTRACTING
•	Reduction in ARCS program management
costs to about 14% of total contract costs
for FY92.
•	ARCS Regional Management Teams
established in each Region to oversee
contract management improvements.
•	Development of draft guidance directing use
of Independent Government Cost Estimates
to improve project scoping, as well as
greater cost control by the RPMs.
•	Contracts management training for regional
Waste Directors and Branch Chiefs
completed.
•	Improvements to award fee process to
increase responsiveness and more directly
link performance with future work.
Superfund Analytical Services
Analyncal operations must be fast and reliable for the Regional
Decision Teams to efficiently and effectively develop a
strategy for site remediation early in the cleanup process. EPA
is developing several useful tools to enhance the speed and
quality of analytical services available to OSCs and RPMs.
•	CADRE--Computer Aided Data Review and
Evaluation is a software package designed lo
expedite the data review process by providing an
automated method for reviewing summary data
submitted by the Contract Lab Program (CLP) labs
When combined with the average 14-day turnaround
times for both organic and inorganic analyses at
contract labs, the overall response time for data
analysis and review should be reduced significantly.
*	Quick-Turnaround Method {QTM) is ready and
operational QTM provides rapid (48-hour)
turnaround of data from the analysis of water,
soil/sediment, and waste samples QTM produces
data of known and documented quality and is
available through the CLP.
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ENFORCEMENT POLICY/EQUITY
PUBLIC FORUMS
The Superfund revitalizanon effon is emphasizing increased
use of de muxunis settlements. The hope is that although de
minimis settlements require time and resources, in the final
analysis, there should be increased equity and efficiency, by
focusing on the major waste contributors ai a site and by
reducing transaction costs To date, the Agency has entered
into 81 de minimis settlements'
The Agency is collecting information on mixed funding to
determine the efBcacy of our current policy.
To further reduce transaction costs and assist companies id
resolving their liability quickly. EPA in conjuncnon with the
State agencies, is developing a strategy for conducting
voluntary cleanups. Some companies are having difficulty
obtaining loans and insurance due to potential Superfund
liability Under the voluntary cleanup concept, companies
would be able to conduct cleanups, with appropriate oversight,
years before the site would be listed on the NPL.
SUCCESS STORIES
Remedianng Superfund sites is a huge job, with lots of
challenges At times, regional offices have met these
challenges in slightly different ways, with varying degrees of
success. At the direction of Rich Guimond, the National
Superfund Director, traveling teams visited all ten Regions to
identify "success stones" and "lessons learned" The teams
solicited from each Region examples of solutions 10 problems
that the Region views as particularly successful Some
innovative approaches represented smail changes in the way
business is conducted, but resulted in big differences in the
efficiency and effectiveness of the program. All of the success
stones are currently being compiled, the document will be sent
to the Regions in early 1993.
INTERAGENCY COOPERATION
Region 3 produced a handbook with the Department of
Defense (DoD), entitled The Road to ROD. which provider
"tips" on how to streamline administrative procedures ai DoD
Superfund sites The manual is well written and imaginatively
illustrated, besides providing important insights into ways to
shorten the remedy selection and ROD process while being
consistent with Superfund policy and the National Contingency
Plan
Good ideas can come from lots of different and varied sources,
and the Superfund revitalization effort is soliciting good ideas
from all parties interested and concerned about mair '«
Superfund program work better. Public forums have bec^ .,ld
on June 24,1992, in Washington, D.C., and on November 12
and 13, 1992, in Chicago, to solicit suggestions from States,
local governments, industry, environmental groups, and the
general public. The next public forums are scheduled for
February in San Francisco, and May in Dallas.
STATE MEETINGS
Many of the challenges currently facing the Superfund program
have been met many times before by some State government.
The Federal and State governments are partners in meeting
environmental challenges; the Superfund program can learn
from their mistakes and from their successes. Regional EPA
managers and their State counterparts meet frequently on many
site-specific and program management issues. In addition,
EPA Headquarters' management and staff have met with State
representatives on several different occasions this past year.
Issues of discussion included the State role in Superfund
revitalizanon and State experiences in enforcement and
community relations, as well as technical issues (eg., soil
cleanup levels), policy issues (e.g., nsk management and future
land use), and procedural issues. These meetings have been
both informative and extremely helpful; we look forward to
continuing this constructive national and regional dialogue.
CONCLUSIONS
Major challenges were met in getting 149 NPL site
constructions completed The streamlining of the Superfund
response process has begun. The nsk assessment procedures
have been reviewed, and improvements to our nsk
management policies are being made Major improvements to
our contracts management program have been implemented.
Although many different offices are working on different
aspects of Superfund revitalization, all the parts are working
for the common goal accelerated nsk reduction through
increased efficiency, effectiveness, and equity. Much has been
accomplished this year, but much still remains to be done
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