Franklin E. Hill, Director
              Randall Chaffins, Deputy
Superfund

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
The Region 4 Superfund Program serves the more than
50-million citizens of the eight southeastern states; the
largest and fastest growing Region in the country.
Region 4 encompasses many irreplaceable natural
resources, including: the Great Smokey Mountains;
Mississippi River; Florida Keys; Okefenokee Swamp; 1/3
of the wetlands and  coastline in the lower 48 states;
and, estuaries  providing habitat for 98% of the nations'
commercial marine fisheries.
With the support of our states, tribes and communities,
the Superfund program in Region 4 has identified more
than 7,000 hazardous waste sites. Of these, 258 private
and federal facility sites are being managed through the
Region's Superfund Remedial Program, including 215 on
the National Priorities List (NPL), which have been or are being cleaned up under EPA's
authority.  Region 4 aggressively pursues enforcement through the "polluter pays" principle,
and, as a result, the majority of our Superfund cleanups are potentially responsible party
lead.  Region 4's Superfund Emergency Response Program responds to more than  100
environmental emergencies each year, in addition to taking a lead role in Homeland Security.

The Region 4 Superfund Division is organized  into  a Front Office and six Branches. The
Front Office includes the Division Director, his staff, and the Office of Superfund Public
Affairs and Outreach. The largest Branch is the Emergency Response  and Removal
Branch (ERRB) which has  three Sections. The Remedial Program is organized into three
Branches and eight Sections. The Superfund  Enforcement and Information  Management
Branch consists of two Sections, and the Superfund Support Branch also has two
Sections.  The Region 4 Superfund Division currently has 193 employees; the  majority in
scientific and engineering  disciplines.

Emergency Response and Removal Program

The Emergency Response and Removal Branch (ERRB) is responsible for implementation of
program function  in two distinct areas: 1) Homeland Security; and 2) emergency response,
removal, and spill prevention activities associated with releases of hazardous substances and
oil spills.  The Strategic Plan activities which ERRB contributes for the  Region are Goal 3:
Preserve and Restore the  Land, Objective 3.2; Restore Land;  Sub-Objective 3.2.1:  Prepare
for and Respond to Accidental and Intentional Releases.  EPA's Superfund Emergency
Response  Program's top priorities are:
                               Superfund At A Glance

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                                                          EPA Region  4
Knob Mine - Ore Knob. NC
     Readiness to respond 24 hours-a-day to a release incident wherever they occur;
     Response with whatever resources are required to eliminate immediate clangers to the
     public and the environment;
     Community relations that can be used to inform the public about a release, response
     activities, and  the substances involved; and
     Prepare for potential incident responses  for Homeland Security.

                                           Region 4 is a national leader in emergency
                                           response and preparedness. The Emergency
                                           Response program maintains a "Culture of
                                           Response" based on  its active participation in
                                           a number of programs including: emergency
                                           response; oil and  Superfund removal  actions;
                                           and,  responses to major natural disasters.

                                           The Region 4 ERRB includes 32 On-Scene
                                           Coordinators (OSCs) and support personnel
                                           including a dedicated emergency response
                                           team of 8 OSCs. Our response capabilities
                                           are significantly enhanced through an outpost
program by which we have permanently stationed OSCs in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, North
Carolina, and Tennessee.  Our outpost OSCs cultivate and maintain close ties with our state
and local counterparts and are able to rapidly  respond to emergencies within their respective
states.

Historically, Region 4 carries out more emergency response actions than any other EPA
region.  ERRB completed 177 emergency responses in 2008 to address releases of either
hazardous substances or oil.  Eighty of these response actions were  to address releases of
hazardous substances and 97 were oil spill responses.

EPA Region 4 is consistently among the top EPA regions in the number of removal actions
completed. Of the 80 hazardous substance emergencies that ERRB  responded to in FY08, 40
were CERCLA Fund-lead, 32 were conducted as emergencies by the  responsible parties and 8
were conducted as time critical responses through a  negotiated enforcement document.
Additionally, Region  4 is currently evaluating and conducting activity-based sampling  at up to
22 vermiculite sites in the Southeast, more than any other EPA region.

Region 4 has one of the most aggressive oil spill prevention and removal programs in the
nation. Oil spill response  accounts for more than 50% of the emergency response actions
within the  Region, and about one-third of ERRB payroll is funded via the Oil Pollution Act. For
FY09, the program is committed to 40 FRP inspections, the largest inspection commitment of
any EPA Region.  Within EPA-Region 4, thousands of abandoned and leaking oil well sites
                         Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
                                             Plugging leaking, abandoned oil well located in the channel of the Mississippi
                                             River near Natchez. Mississippi.
have been identified as currently or
potentially impacting waterways. To
address these threats, Region 4 has
implemented an ambitious abandoned oil
well program under which leaking oil wells
are identified, prioritized, and properly
plugged in an efficient and cost-effective
manner.  A total of 54 oil wells in
Kentucky were properly plugged and
closed in 2008.  As of mid-May, 62 oil
wells have been plugged in FY09. The
Region 4 abandoned oil well program has
been recognized by the U.S. Coast Guard
National Pollution  Funds Center (NPFC) as
a model in efficiency and cost
effectiveness.
Region 4 is the Lead Region for Homeland Security and, in conjunction with other Regions
and Headquarters, has developed a joint planning framework to enhance our preparedness.
We have also implemented a catastrophic hurricane planning initiative with FEMA and the
States of Florida  and North Carolina.  Region 4 has developed and/or participated in a
number of catastrophic event exercises in the past 2 years highlighted by SONs07, Operation
Dry Hydrant, and several Incident Management Team exercises (with Response Support
Corps participation).

The Region has been activated by FEMA under Stafford Act authority more than any other
Region in the nation.  We have responded to 10 hurricanes and tropical storms since 2003.
Some of these storms  were among the most severe and damaging hurricanes of the past 20
years, including Hugo, Andrew, Francis, Floyd, Ivan and Katrina.  Hurricanes  have impacted
the coastal areas of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Mississippi and Alabama, as well
as severe flooding which has affected the inland areas of Georgia, South Carolina, North
Carolina, and Alabama.

Response Program Status

Thus far in  FY09, ERRB has received 2,937 notifications from the National Response Center
(NRC) for either hazardous substance or  oil spill incidents.  A total of 44 hazardous substance
responses have been completed and 94 completed oil spill  responses, which includes 62
abandoned oil well removal actions.  The current GPRA targets for R4 are a significant
contribution to the national goals in many of the program areas.  The targets for FY09 and
the fiscal year-to-date accomplishments are:
                                Superfund At A Glance
                                                                                   4

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                                                                EPA  Region 4
GPRA/PART MEASURES
By 201 1 , achieve and maintain at least 95
percent of the maximum score on readiness
evaluation criteria in each Region
Superfund-lead removal actions (completions)
Voluntary removal actions overseen by EPA,
(completions)
Hazardous Sub/Oil spill reports
Inspections and drills at FRP facilities
Number of SPCC inspections completed
REGIONAL
TARGET
2007 Baseline
28
28
Report
40
Report
ACCOMPLISHED
98%
19
25
2,937
37
79
NATIONAL
ANNUAL
GOAL
N/A
195
125
N/A
250
NA

Remedial Program

The Region 4 Superfund Remedial Program supports EPA's Strategic Plan for Goal 3:
Preserve and Restore the Land, Objective 3.2; Restore Land; Sub-Objective 3.2.2;
Cleanup and Revitalize Contaminated Land.

The Remedial Program is responsible for all aspects of Superfund site management from
site assessment through deletion. The Remedial Program can be divided into four
consecutive phases of cleanup: pre-remedial (discovery through site assessment
decision);  investigation (remedial investigation through record of decision); remedy
implementation (remedial design through construction  completion); and, post-
construction (operation and maintenance through deletion).

The Region 4 Superfund Remedial Program has 258 sites under management throughout
the eight States of Region 4.  The State of Florida has the most sites with 85, and the
State of Mississippi has the fewest with 7. The Remedial Program has made significant
progress in site cleanup over the past 25-years with  11.8% under investigation, 27.8%
remedy in  progress, 41.6% construction completed, and 18.8% deleted. Sites in  the
earlier  phases of the remedial  pipeline are a combination of more recently added sites
and the most complex and most difficult sites.
                               Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
                SUPERFUND SITES IN REGION 4
                    TYPE OF SITE
                  258 TOTAL FACILITIES
     SUPERFUND SITES IN REGION 4
        PHASE OF CLEANUP
        258 TOTAL FACILITIES
Site Assessment

The Region 4 Superfund Site Assessment Section continues to add new sites to the Remedial
Program.  Based on the past several years, new sites are being added to the NPL at about
the same rate as sites are deleted from the NPL in  Region 4. Sites targeted for proposal to
the NPL include:
     September 2009
     Kerr-McGee, FL
     Kerr-McGee, NC
     J.J. Seiffert, FL
Private Remedial
March 2010
Red Panther, MS
Ellis Rd./American Electric, FL
Sanford Dry Cleaner, FL
Smokey Mountain Smelter, TN
Wright Chemical, NC
The vast majority of Superfund sites managed through the Region 4 private Remedial
Program are on the NPL.  The Region also created the Superfund Alternative (SA), formerly
NPL Equivalent, approach, and manages sites in conformance with the 2002 Headquarters
guidance on Superfund Alternative (SA) sites, as well as having SA sites that pre-date the
Headquarters guidance. Additionally, there are a few sites that have been proposed, but not
finalized, to the NPL under management.  Region 4 is aggressively pursuing all options to
expedite cleanup of sites.  The average tenure of a Region 4 Superfund site in the remedial
pipeline is 11.7 years, +. 4.4 years, from listing on the NPL to deletion.  The number of years
in the pipeline has increased through time, as would be expected, but the number of sites
deleted  also has decreased since 2000 indicating that this trend is not solely due to the
passage of time.

The benefits of the SA approach vary depending on the circumstances at the site.  A  key
benefit is the resource savings of not formally proposing and listing a site on the NPL.  Other
                                Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                 EPA  Region  4
benefits may include a community's good will at not having the site listed on the NPL, a PRP's
willingness to negotiate a good-faith agreement, and the opportunity to start cleanup work
more quickly.  Region 4 has 31 "Regionally Identified" sites using the SA approach, 16 of
which meet the current OECA requirements for SA.  Four sites will likely never meet the
OECA requirements, for example the Former Spellman Engineering site.
Because there was no viable Potentially
Responsible Party, the Former Spellman
Engineering site did not meet Headquarters
criteria for a Superfund Alternative Site.
However, the City of Orlando agreed to enter
into EPA's first Contiguous Property Owner
Agreement to conduct the estimated $12.9
million remedy in  exchange for EPA's
agreement  to use its enforcement discretion
not to list the Site on the  NPL.  In addition to
saving federal remedial action funds, this
approach addresses the desire of the City and
the community not to have an NPL listed site within their City and increases the potential for
site redevelopment while  achieving the same level of cleanup as if it were a listed site.

The Superfund Remedial Program is helping  communities all  over the Southeast realize
significant revitalization and redevelopment opportunities by cleaning up Superfund sites
and facilitating their reuse through Region 4's Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
(SRI).  This initiative addresses barriers to reuse that have left many Superfund sites
underutilized  following cleanup. Reuse  of these sites allows communities to regain lost
landscapes as valuable green space, add recreational amenities, or create jobs and
increase local revenues through use as commercial property. The Region 4 Superfund
Remedial Program has led the nation in developing innovative approaches to facilitate
reuse and redevelopment of Superfund sites, including:
                                                    Prospective Purchaser Inquiry
                                                    service
                                                    Region 4 SRI website
                                                    Site Fact Sheets highlighting
                                                    redevelopment successes and
                                                    opportunities
                                                    "Top Ten Questions" for prospective
                                                    purchasers
                                                    Excellence in Site Reuse Award
                               Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
The Cascade Park Gasification site in downtown Tallahassee, Florida was the first
recipient of the Excellence in Site Reuse Award. The cleanup of this formerly blighted
property is returning park land and recreational space to the heart of the State capital.
The Mayor, City Council members, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and
representatives of state and federal elected officials all attended the award ceremony.

The Superfund Remedial Program also has established a Post Construction Completion
(PCC) Team to bring together Institutional Controls (ICs), Five-Year Reviews (FYRs), and
Site Reuse issues associated with post-construction sites. The PCC Team provides a
forum for team members and Remedial  Project Managers to discuss complex issues
associated with post-construction sites,  and develop strategies to achieve Site-wide
Ready for Anticipated Use.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is supporting 6 Superfund  fund-lead
remedial actions  (3 new starts/3 ongoing) in Region 4.  This includes 1 site in the State
of North Carolina, 2 in the State of Georgia, and 3 in the State of Florida. The total
value of these projects is $31 M  which is expected to create at least 200 jobs in the first
12-months. The ARRA funding will significantly accelerate cleanup at these sites, and
will result in bringing  human exposure under control at  1 site, groundwater migration
under control at 2 sites, construction completion at 2 sites, and site wide ready for
anticipated use at 2 sites.

Federal Facilities

The Federal Facilities  Branch (FFB) works closely with states and other federal agencies
to provide oversight, technical support,  regulatory guidance, and assistance  in the
cleanup of 19 NPL and 11 Base Realignment and Closure sites at Department of Defense
(DOD) military bases  and Department of Energy (DOE)  nuclear reactor, processing, and
research centers in the Region.  FFB oversees highly complex remedial and removal
cleanup work at three major DOE complexes:  the Savannah River Site  (SRS); the Oak
Ridge Reservation (ORR) Site; and, the  Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant  Site (Paducah).
The environmental management budget for these DOE facilities ranges from  $100 M to
$1 B annually. The three DOE sites will  receive a total of $2.4 billion in ARRA funding
which represents about 40% of the ARRA funds that DOE will receive nationally for
environmental management.  This will create  thousands of jobs as a result of the funds.
This will substantially increase our workload at the sites and require additional hiring of
contract support  and staff to meet the schedules and milestones. The Region has
requested funds from DOE for our increased work load and DOE is
receptive to our request.

FFB oversees  environmental cleanups resulting from past improper hazardous
materials/waste handling and disposal operations at Department of Defense  (DoD)
                               Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                  EPA Region 4
installations. These installations include Air Force, Army, and Navy/Marine facilities. In
addition, oversight of hazardous waste cleanups takes place at non-military federal
facilities such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Marshall
Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL. The Federal Facility cleanup program tracks and
reports targets and measures separately from the private  Remedial Program, as
tabulated.

\

GPRA Measures
RI/FS Starts
Decision Documents
Final ROD (NAS Cecil Field)
RA Starts
RA Completions
Construction Completions (NAS Cecil Field)
Five-year Reviews
FY08
Goal
12
12
1
14
12
1
4
FY08
Achievec
14
12
1
15
12
0
4
FY09
Goal
4
8
0
9
8
1
2

                                                                 Region 4 FFB
                                                                 created the
                                                                 Tiered Partnering
                                                                 approach for
                                                                 cleanup in the
                                                                 Southeast. This
                                                                 is a 14-year
                                                                 alliance among
                                                                 federal, state and
                                                                 military
                                                                 installations and
                                                                 major commands
                                                                 established at
                                                                 three tiers: Tier
                                                                 I, installation/
                                                                 RPM level; Tier
                                                                 II, state level/
                                                                 Section Chief;
                                                                 and Tier III,
regional level/Branch Chief. The tiered partnership fosters cooperative relationships
among members and empowers teams at all levels to more effectively remediate DOD
hazardous substance release sites. Participants at each level contribute authorities,
expertise and resources to provide installations with a complete set of cleanup tools.  In
Region 4, restoration partnering is driven by a simple shared goal: provide for the
quickest and most cost-effective cleanup. Successful  environmental cleanups on military
installations require teamwork among the installations, regulators, service providers,
contractors and community members.   Partnering  has transformed the installation
cleanup program from insecure funding and controversial decisions, and focused efforts
to share information, solve problems and expedite cleanup.  This is the only  regional
cleanup partnership of its kind in the nation.

Where partnering has not been successful, the  Region has taken necessary enforcement
to resolve issues with federal facilities.  Examples: Milan Formal Ground Water Dispute.
In August 2008, Region 4 initiated a formal  dispute with the Army concerning the
adequacy of ground water data and cleanup alternatives for ground water contamination
                                Superfund At A Glance

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                                                                EPA Region 4
at the 22,000 acre ammunition production and storage facility. The dispute was
resolved in December 2008.

For the past several years, EPA and DoD
have been involved in a dispute regarding
completion of the 13 FFAs remaining to be
signed nationally. Due to Congressional
hearings September 2008, and a decision
from the Department of Justice on
December 1, 2008, there has been
movement to finalize the remaining FFAs
nationwide. Three of the 13 outstanding
FFAs are for Federal Facility Superfund
sites in Region 4: Tyndall Air Force Base (FL), Redstone Army Arsenal (AL), and Naval
Air Station Whiting Field (FL).  The FFA at Whiting Field has been signed and is out for
public comment. FFAs for Tyndall and Redstone are still being negotiated and are
targeted for completion in 2009.

2009 Remedial Program Priorities

There remain 6 Superfund sites where human exposure is not under control, and 33
Superfund sites identified  as groundwater migration not under control in  Region 4.  A
regional coordinator monitors each of these sites's progress to achieve an "under
control" status, and tracks the annual GRPA commitments. EPA Region 4 Superfund
Remedial Program priorities are:

   •  Bring Human  Exposure Under Control at all sites;
   •  Accelerating cleanup and achieving Construction Completion;
   •  Continued emphasis on Site-wide Ready for Anticipated Use and Superfund
     Redevelopment Initiative;
   •  Focus on stewardship at post-construction sites;
   •  Expand community involvement and outreach to all members of affected
     communities; and,
   •  Obtain Federal Facility Agreements at remaining facilities.
                               Superfund At A Glance
10

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
Region 4 Superfund GPRA Measure Goals
Primary Measure
Site Assessment Conducted (Final
Assessment Decision (FAD))
Number of Superfund Hazardous Waste
Sites with Human Exposures Under Control
Number of Superfund Hazardous Waste
Sites with Groundwater Migration Under
Control
Superfund Construction Completions
Site-wide Ready for Anticipated use
2008 Goal
45
1
2
4
3
Achieved
45
5
3
4
5
2009 Goal
50
1
2
3
4
Enforcement and Information Management

The Superfund Enforcement and Information Management Branch (SEIMB) supports the
Agency's achievement of goals under the Strategic Plan for Objective 3.2: Restore Land, Sub-
objectives 3.2.1 (Prepare for and Respond to Accidental and Intentional Releases), 3.2.2
(Clean Up and Revitalize Contaminated Land), and 3.2.3 (Maximize Potentially Responsible
Party (PRP) Participation at Superfund Sites) and Goal  5.1.3 (Achieve Environmental
Protection Through Improved Compliance, Monitoring and  Enforcement).  SEIMB is
responsible for remedial and removal enforcement activities and information and records
and remedial  cleanups, special accounts management,  and records management. The
following charts illustrate Region 4's leadership in Superfund Enforcement nationally:
                Past Costs > 200K Addressed in FY 2004-2008
                     Region 1 Region 2 Region 3 Region 4 Region 5 Region 6 Region 7 Region 8 Region 9 Region 10
                     9.93%  13.83%  9.46% 15.25% 17.38% 7.45%  6.97%  8.27%  8.51%  2.96%
                               Superfund At A Glance
11

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                                                                          EPA  Region  4
             FY06 - FY08 PRP-Lead Remedial Action Starts
                                 & FY09 Targets
                                   Total by Region
                       DFY06
                                  1FY07
                                           DFY08      DFY09 Target
    20-
    18-
    16-
    14
  » 12
  ! 10~
  1  8~
     6-
     4
     2
       Region 1  Region 2  Regions  Region 4  Regions Region 6  Region 7  Regions  Region 9  Region 10
         National Totals by Fiscal Year
         FY06  29
         FY07  23
         FY08  35                             Data Source: CERCLIS, SCAP-14 Report EOY Data Pulls & FY09 Worfcplanning
         FY09  25 (Target)
                  Three Year Superfund Removal Starts
                              PRP-lead & Fund-lead
                                  FY 2006 - FY 2008
140
120
                                                                                        140
                                                                                        120
                                                                                        100
      • PRP-Lead Removal Starts Without Orders    D PRP-Lead Removal Starts With Orders   U Fund-lead Removal Starts
                                                                  National Total = 1125
                                                                                       40
                                                                                       20
      Reg 1     Reg 2    Reg 3     Reg 4     Reg 5     Reg 6    Reg 7
      42%     52%     43%      54%      44%      64%     46%
  - Percentages under chart are total PRP Removal Starts as a % of total Removal Starts in that region.
  - Percentages in chart are total PRP Removal Starts with orders as a % of total PRP Removal Starts.
Reg 8     Reg 9    Reg 10
25%      45%      52%

        Data Source: CERCLIS 10/2008
                            Superfund At A Glance
                                   12

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                                                                EPA  Region 4
Priorities specific to the Strategic plan and in support of Superfund Division statutory and
programmatic responsibilities are to:

     •  Address cost recovery and conduct enforcement actions on sites with costs greater
        than $200K before the Statute of Limitations (SOL) expires;
     •  Conduct PRP searches and Enforcement activities to ensure that PRPs conduct
        investigations and cleanups;
     •  Manage Division cost recovery and  collection activities;
     •  Participate in negotiations and provide enforcement support for work and settlement
        of cost for cases with planned RI/FS, RD/RAs or referred to DOJ  for litigation;
     •  Establish  and maintain a comprehensive, automated consolidated records
        management system to store document information on each Superfund site in the
        inventory;
     •  Compile and maintain the official Administrative Record required by the NCP.
     •  Coordinate Division's computer hardware and software acquisitions, and Web page
        management;
     •  Establish  CERCLA spill identification numbers for the NPL and non-NPL sites;
     •  Provide financial management support for the removal, remedial, enforcement and
        federal facilities programs and for cost recovery reports and documentation.
     •  Manage enforcement data in CERCLIS database.

Region 4 is a national leader in enforcement Goal 3 and 5 Measure targets. FY09 goals
are shown below:
1 Primary Enforcement Measures
Goals 3 & 5
SOL Cases w/ Unaddressed Total Past Costs > $200,000

Settlements or enforcement actions taken before start of
RA
Financial Assurance
(Bring into compliance)
Management of Special Accounts
Big Case Projections; Civil Enforcement Cases with at least
1 million Ibs of pollutants reduced, $5 million of injunctive
relief, or $1 million civil penalty; or cases with a cost
recovery or PRP cleanup commitment of at least $5 million
| |or VCMA of 1 million cubic yards.
FY08
Goal

10

95%
10
90%


~


FY08
Achieved

16

100%
9
100%


~


FY09
Goal

22

95%
1
90%


6


                               Superfund At A Glance
13

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
Support Activities
The Superfund Support Branch is comprised of two sections, the Superfund Contracts/Grants
Section and the Technical Services Section. Contracts and grants supports Region 4
Superfund by placing, managing, and protecting funds used in extramural  funding
agreements.  These agreements include contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, and
interagency agreements.  Scopes of these agreements range from initial site assessments to
remedy implementation both for Fund-lead, Federal Facility-Lead, and Potentially Responsible
Party Lead actions, and from emergency response planning and preparedness to providing
technical and construction assistance in  emergencies of national significance.  The technical
services group supports Region 4 in the  fields of hydrogeology, human health and ecological
risk assessment and radiological assessment.  The goal of technical services is to support the
programs in  meeting their goals and  targets, but to also ensure that the best science is used
in decision making to meet those goals and targets.

Office of Superfund Public Affairs and Outreach

In 2008,  the Superfund Division centralized three significant program elements vital to the
Superfund mission.  These program elements are community involvement, Environmental
Justice, and  revitalization.  The Office of Superfund Public Affairs and  Outreach has
responsibility for developing, implementing and directing the community relations activities
as required by CERCLA and SARA in support of the Superfund  Program.  Working closely with
the  program officials, the community involvement effort will provide assistance to  EPA, State
and local governments in addressing community  relations issues.  The Office is responsible
for supporting projects where communities will restore to  productive use, idled, or under-
used industrial and commercial properties where  redevelopment is complicated by real or
perceived environmental contamination.  The  Office administers the Environmental Justice
program  for  the Superfund Division as it directly  impacts efforts to provide empowerment
and leadership development to the Region 4 urban and rural centers which can result in
substantive and sustainable improvements in  community health and environmental quality at
and around facilities and sites.

2009 OSPAO Priorities

  •  Focusing greater emphasis and accountability on meeting the needs  of the citizens and
     the stakeholders involved at potential and designated Superfund sites;
  •  Provide central leadership for 3 key areas of the Superfund  Program;
  •  Continue communication with Headquarters and other Regional offices community
     relations, environmental justice and revitalization programs; and,
  •  Cross-training of staff to enable staff to  work on a range of  Superfund remedial and
     removal sites and further the Superfund Division succession planning strategy.
                               Superfund At A Glance
14

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                                                                 EPA Region 4
Superfund Human Capital
In 2008, the Superfund Division completed a Strategic Workforce Planning evaluation.
The goals of the evaluation were to perform a supply inventory analysis, a demand
analysis, and to provide input to succession planning.  At that time, the Superfund
Program employed 186 staff members with an average length of federal service of 21
years, average grade of GS-13, average age of 47 years, and 61% have a Bachelor's
Degree or higher educational attainment. The principal occupational series in Superfund
are 1301  (General Physical Science), 819 (Environmental Engineer), and 028
(Environmental Protection Specialist); collectively representing 73% of the Division
workforce.  More than 91% of the Division workforce is in mission critical occupational
series.

Succession  planning for the Superfund Division is increasingly important.  The average
age of Superfund employees is  above the regional average, and the occupational series
with the largest number of retirement-eligible employees are also  in high demand in the
marketplace. The Division will have a higher than average number of managers/
supervisors that are retirement-eligible over the next 3-years.  There will be an ongoing
need for focused recruiting, training, and employee development as the average number
of years of Superfund experience by the Division employees' decreases.
                               Superfund At A Glance
15

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                                                                            EPA  Region 4
                    Region 4 Superfund Initiatives and Challenges
ARRA Remedial Action.  The Private Remedial Program has 6 cleanups being accelerated by ARRA funding.
Coal Combustion Waste. Region 4 Superfund is the lead for the TVA Kingston ash response.	
DOE ARRA projects. Providing oversight activities within a timely manner due to the complex issues at the
Sites to meet ARRA requirements.	
Federal Facility FFA's. Resolve ongoing disputes and complete agreements at the remaining 3 facilities.
Federal Facility Partnering Program. A successful management process to advance cleanup and establish
ground rules for staff and management interaction.	
Project Management Workgroup. To improve project management, update the skills and tools for the RPM,
and increase the quality and quantity of program management information.	
State Cleanup Levels. Several States in Region 4 have established simplified cleanup regulations requiring
cleanups to attain ILCR = 1 X 10"6 and HI = 1 that may be considered ARARs, effectively eliminating
Superfund's use of the risk range in setting cleanup goals and complicating the "point of departure" for action.
Naturally Occurring Asbestos.
requiring further evaluation.
125 locations (mines, prospects, and occurrences) in 4 Region 4 States
Libby "Sister Sites" 22 vermiculite processing sites located in 7 Region 4 States.	
Vapor Intrusion Pathway Updated national guidance and toxicity values for residential properties as well as
corresponding guidance for commercial/industrial properties is needed.	
Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS). Water Division is addressing
these "pollutants or contaminants" in Decatur, AL and Dalton, GA, supported by Superfund, and may request
enforcement support through CERCLA.	
Phosphate Mining/TENOROM.  28 former and active mine sites in CERCLIS in the State of Florida	
R4 Superfund Web Presence. Significant upgrades are in process to improve public communication and
information gathering.	
Cross Program.  Mentoring and cross training for staff to improve readiness, succession planning, and
personal development.	
EC2/Green Remediation.  Develop regional policy and continue support of Headquarters initiatives.	
DART/EQulS Data Management. Deployment of a Program-wide geospatial Data Archival and Retrieval
system is ongoing (Fund-lead sites are complete/PRP-lead are being piloted).	
Laptop/Docking Stations. Staff computer upgrade to support COOP plans and work from remote locations.
Response Support Corps. The Region maintains a large and trained RSC to support large-scale response.
                                     Superfund At A Glance
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