State and Tribal Response
Program Highlights
SEPA
United States
Environmental Protec
Agency
EPA Funding Provided to States and Tribes to Address Contaminated Land in their Communities
REGION I
RHODE ISLAND - The Rhode Island Office of Waste Management
used Section 128(a) Response Program funding to finalize an
Expedited Policy for the Remediation of Environmental Simple
Sites (EXPRESS) to provide Performing Parties and consultants
with a means to streamline the approval process at brownfield sites
through expedited technical reviews, presumptive remedies, and
confirmation sampling protocols. After meetings and input from the
regulated community, the Office of Waste Management held a formal
public comment period in the summer of 2013. The Office of Waste
Management received written comments from many interested
parties, subsequently addressed any feedback, and finalized the
Policy. Under this new Policy:
• The Performing Parties are in constant contact with the Office of
Waste Management staff beginning with a startup meeting within
7 days after receipt of the EXPRESS Submission Package. This
communication keeps the dialogue open and proactively deals with
issues before or as they occur.
• Several new areas of self-certification of information to reduce
Office of Waste Management review times.
• Time saving measures including the combination of the Remedial
Decision Letter (RDL) and the Remedial Approval Letter (RAL) into
one letter.
• Total time through the process from initial notification to issuance
of a RAL is 60 days.
REGION 2
NEW JERSEY - The new Greg Grant Park and playground now
occupy the 1.45-acre former brownfield located in Trenton at the
corner of East State Street and Cook Avenue. The former V&S,
Thropp, and Standard Roofing property is located near the P. J. Hill
Elementary School. The property was contaminated with various
metals including lead and potentially toxic chemicals including
polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs). The New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection (NJDEP) used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding to provide cleanup oversight. The contaminants
were removed and a soil cap was placed on site to prevent
any contact with soils beneath the property. The property was
transformed from a former turn-of-the-century foundry and machine
shop into a welcoming park with a brightly colored playground,
basketball court, short walking trail, and picnic pavilion. In 2013,
NJDEP created Greg Grant Park as part of a larger Trenton initiative
to push for more parks and recreation programs for city kids. The
redevelopment also included the creation of the new Eastern Trenton
Homes development.
Playground equipment in Greg Grant Park.
REGION 3
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA-An abandoned retail area in the
Northwest section of Washington, D.C. encompasses two square
blocks. The project area was all retail with a grocery store being the
main tenant along with a dry cleaner, a bank branch, and several
small stores, including a toy store. With oversight through Section
128(a) response program funding, the Phase II assessment at
the property indicated that there were two separate sources of
contamination—perchloroethylene (PCE) from a dry cleaner that
has been in operation since 1965 and petroleum products from a
5,000 gallon heating oil tank. The property entered the District of
Columbia's Voluntary Cleanup Program (VCP) and the city opened
a Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) case to address the
petroleum contamination. The District's Underground Tank Program
reviewed and closed the case in conjunction with the VCP staff, and
the VCP program addressed directly the PCE contamination. The
LUST case was closed shortly before a Certificate of Completion
was issued under the VCP on March 13, 2014. The project will
be redeveloped into a mixed-use complex and named "Cathedral
Commons" as it is located three blocks north of the Washington
National Cathedral.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
May/June 2014
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REGION 4
KENTUCKY - Bona fide prospective purchaser (BFPP) liability
protection provides a degree of assurance to brownfield
redevelopers, but it is an affirmative defense since it is used as a
response to an enforcement action. Many purchasers want a greater
degree of comfort before acquiring a property. In response, Kentucky
Department of Environmental Protection staff encouraged a new
statute that does just that. Passed in 2013, Kentucky's Revised "
Statute (KRS) 224.1-415 and the associated regulations provide
mechanisms by which developers can purchase a property with
greater peace of mind in the form of a Department for Environmental
Protection document. This document concurs that a purchaser meets
the requirements for BFPP liability protection, including concurrence
that their Property Management Plan includes "reasonable steps"
with respect to hazardous substances on the property. To date, there
have been over 25 program applicants. The future of the program,
the opportunities available to participants, and the benefits to
communities across the Commonwealth are promising.
REGION 5
MICHIGAN - Traverse City is redeveloping "Traverse City Place"—
which is walking distance from the central downtown area—to attract
more pedestrians to the existing retail and restaurant establishments
and bring in more commercial retail and tourism development. This
area was historically used for automobile dealerships and repair
shops, gas stations, bulk fuel storage, dry cleaners, and other
commercial uses. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
(DEQ) used Section 128(a) Response Program funding to conduct
an environmental assessment in the summer of 2013. Groundwater
samples detected the presence of cyanide, mercury, and selenium
at concentrations exceeding Michigan's protection criteria. During
dewatering for construction, thousands of gallons of groundwater
were pretreated. A large portion of the redevelopment project is the
development of the Hotel Indigo. The city is incorporating sustainable
building practices, including energy efficient windows, energy efficient
lighting control systems and appliances, high recycle content building
material, a grey water irrigation system, rain gardens, and a green
roof. Hotel Indigo is expected to generate 45 permanent full-time
and part-time jobs with the capital investment totaling $13,000,000.
The other buildings in the area are expected to be demolished and/
or redeveloped throughout 2014-2015. Expected investment of the
remainder of the block is $8,000,000 and may create an additional 27
new jobs.
REGION 6
OKLAHOMA-Tulsa's Brady Arts District was historically a thriving
industrial area, but saw a decrease in economic activity over the
last 20 years. Recent initiatives, such as the Park on Brady, spurred
the revitalization of the district while including efforts to conserve
its historic character. Through community visioning sessions, the
community helped create a plan for the future revitalization of the
district, the Brady Arts District Small Area Plan. The Oklahoma
Department of Environmental Quality (DEO) used Section 128(a)
Response Program funding to provide oversight of the removal of
12 underground storage tanks (LIST) and petroleum contaminated
soil. Innovative geothermal technology beneath the Park on Brady
provides low-cost, low-emissions heating and cooling to more than
135,000 square feet in the neighboring Mathews Warehouse and
the Hardesty Arts Center. The Brady project is one of the largest
geo exchange well fields of its kind in the world. The Park on Brady
outfitted its new 11,000 square-foot, covered pavilion with 194 solar
panels to power park amenities and lighting and LED pedestrian
lighting is used throughout the park and the Brady Arts District. Other
features include native garden features, brick and concrete paved
paths, large interactive fountains and four small water features. By
combining green, renewable development with community goals,
the Park on Brady promotes an active pedestrian street life and
provides a neighborhood venue for art exhibits, farmers markets,
outdoor performances, and more. Lower energy costs and a vibrant
community space is attracting and encouraging additional local
business investments.
REGION 7
WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA- The Winnebago Tribe
of Nebraska was prepared to conduct Phase I and Phase II
environmental assessments on a property that contained an
abandoned house, trailer, shed, and above ground storage tank
(AST). Prior to the start of the project, an accidental fire burnt all
three building structures before it could be put out. Using photos
the Tribe's Brownfields Coordinator had taken during a property
evaluation, she restructured the project to address three tasks: the
excavation and off-site disposal of all suspected asbestos- and
lead-based paint contaminated debris and surface soils followed by
confirmation soil sampling, the backfill and compaction of clean soil,
and the tank contents/underlying soil sampling and removal of the
AST. This was the Brownfield Coordinator's first cleanup project and
tasks included writing the request for environmental contractor bids,
evaluating and selecting a contractor, coordinating all aspects of
this project, and communicating its progress and outcome. Concrete
pads were poured on the property for several mobile homes recently
acquired by the Tribe. Families moved into the homes in the summer
of 2014, resulting in another success story for the Winnebago Tribe
of Nebraska.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
May/June 2014
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REGION 8
UTE MOUNTAIN UTE TRIBE - Through the Ute Mountain Ute
(UMU) Brownfields tribal response program, the Tribal Brownfields
Coordinator inventoried 138 properties consisting of abandoned
homes, Tribal administration buildings, and numerous open dumps
and landfills. One of the properties that the UMU Brownfields
program addressed was an old closed landfill with a compromised
cap and exposed garbage. UMU provided oversight for a Phase I
and II environmental assessment at the property. Subsequent to that,
the tribe applied and received an EPA Brownfields Cleanup Grant
to make improvements to the landfill cap with a long term goal of
installing a solar farm on the closed site. UMU Brownfields Program
has held numerous meetings with the Tribal Government, tribal
members, and other federal agencies to plan and organize closed
landfill project. A meeting among U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), Indian Health Services (IHS), and the tribe was held
recently to develop a workgroup and identify areas where the federal
agencies can help leverage resources to assist with the solar farm
project. IHS is assisting with the remediation design and an EPA/
Department of Energy (DOE) liaison is assisting with securing DOE
funds for solar panels.
REGION 10
CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF COOS, LOWER UMPQUA, AND
SIUSLAW-Through EPA's Brownfield Section 128(a) Response
Program, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and
Siuslaw have funded oversight activities and participate in the
decision-making process of a cleanup at a neighboring formerly
used defense property. The tribes have been reviewing cleanup
plans of a former U.S. Navy base prepared by the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers and Oregon's Department of Environmental Quality in
anticipation of acquiring the 43-acre property once the remediation is
complete. The Coos Head Abatement and Demolition Project involve
asbestos abatement and demolition of four buildings. The property,
referred to as Coos Head, sits at the entrance to Coos Bay Inlet
on the Oregon coast and was formerly used as a U.S. Navy base.
The Coos Bay Inlet is the site of the deepest coastal port between
San Francisco and the Columbia River. The port has been growing
in its economic impact on the region and the Coos Head project is
expected to make a significant economic contribution to the area.
GUAM - Earlier this year, Guam EPA's board of directors officially
adopted the Pacific Basin Environmental Screening Levels (ESLs).
The Pacific Basin ESLs provide a baseline number for cleanup levels
during response actions. During the past seven years, staff from
Guam EPA worked with Hawaii's Dr. Roger Brewer to develop the
Pacific Basin ESLs. The working group hosted multiple meetings
for internal staff, private companies, and other government entities.
The group also conducted a public hearing and presentation about
the Pacific Basin ESLs to the Guam EPA board of directors during
their February 2014 monthly meeting. The development of the ESLs
was funded in part by Section 128(a) Response Program funding.
The Pacific Basin ESLs give Guam EPA site managers an initial
framework when evaluating each site to determine final cleanup
levels. The levels can also be used to help in situations where there
is a perceived presence of hazard. The conservative levels were set
due to the island's reliance on a single source aquifer, the Northern
Guam Lens. The Lens is housed in limestone karst. The limestone
acts like a sponge for water and pollutants. This makes it possible
for contamination to directly affect the drinking water source quickly.
Guam EPA will continue to use the Pacific Basin ESLs to provide
guidance for any entity working on a response action to clean up or
address hazards posed by the presence, or perceived presence, of
contaminated soil or groundwater.
United States
Environmental Protection
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Funding
May/June 2014
EPA-560-F-I4-203
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