EPA 333-B-OO-OOO
July 2015
POTENTIALLY RESPONSIBLE
PARTY(PRP)SEARCH
BASIC TRAINING
Office of Site Remediation Enforcement
Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
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POTENTIALLY RESPONSIBLE
PARTY (PRP)SEARCH
BASIC TRAINING
Office of Site Remediation Enforcement
Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
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Table of Contents
PRP SEARCH BASIC TRAINING TEAM i
TEAM BIOGRAPHIES ii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO CERCLA 1
CHAPTER 2: LIABILITY OVERVIEW 7
CHAPTERS: GATHERING INFORMATION 17
CHAPTER 4: ISSUING INFORMATION AND SITE ACCESS REQUESTS 24
CHAPTERS: PERFORMING TITLE SEARCHES 34
CHAPTER 6: CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS 45
CHAPTER 7: BUSINESS ENTITIES AS PRPs 53
CHAPTERS: COMPILING PRP DATA AND MANAGING RECORDS 59
CHAPTER 9: PRP SEARCH DOCUMENTATION 67
APPENDIX A - ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
APPENDIX B - GLOSSARY
APPENDIX C - POTENTIALLY RESPONSIBLE PARTY INTERNET INFORMATION SOURCES (PRPIIS)
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PRP SEARCH BASIC TRAINING TEAM
The PRP Search Basic Training Team was formed in 2011 to address a critical need identified by
EPA, states, tribes, and other stakeholders. The all-volunteer team developed a nine-part course
designed to cover the major steps and considerations in performing potentially responsible party
(PRP) searches and relate them to other milestones in the Superfund response process. The
course was first presented June 9-10, 2014 in Denver, Colorado, immediately prior to the 9th
National Training Conference on PRP Search Enhancement, and forms the basis of this manual.
All team members are to be congratulated on performing an invaluable service for the entire
Superfund enforcement community.
Region
Team Member/Contact
Address
Headquarters
Nancy Deck, Team Leader
(202) 564-6039
deck.nancy@epa.gov
Office of Site Remediation Enforcement
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. (2273-A)
Washington, DC 20460
Region 1
Martha Bosworth
(617)918-1407
bosworth.martha@epa.gov
5 Post Office Square
Suite 100 (OSRR07-2)
Boston, MA 02109-3912
Region 3
Carlyn Winter Prisk
(215) 814-2625
prisk. carlyn@epa.gov
Office of Enforcement
Cost Recovery Branch (3HS62)
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Region 6
Cindy Brown
(214)665-7408
brown.cynthia@epa.gov
Enforcement Assessment Section
Superfund Division (6SF-TE)
1445 Ross Avenue, Ste. 1200 (Fountain Place)
Dallas, TX 75202-2733
Region 6
Courtney Kudla
(214)665-8008
kudla.courtney@epa.gov
Enforcement Assessment Section
Superfund Division (6SF-TE)
1445 Ross Avenue, Ste. 1200 (Fountain Place)
Dallas, TX 75202-2733
Region 8
Andrea Madigan
(303)312-6904
madigan. andrea@epa.gov
Office of Enforcement, Compliance, and
Environmental Justice (8ENF-RC)
1595 Wynkoop Street
Denver, CO 80202-1129
Region 8
Mike Rudy
(303)312-6332
rudy .mike @epa.gov
Office of Enforcement, Compliance, and
Environmental Justice (8ENF-RC)
1595 Wynkoop Street
Denver, CO 80202-1129
Current members of the PRP Search Basic Training Team would like to acknowledge and express their
thanks for the efforts of former members in developing PRP Search Basic Training:
Carol Bems, Region 2; Herb Miller, Region 4; and Grechen Schmidt, Region 10.
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Team Biographies
CAROL BERNS
Carol Berns has been practicing law for 34 years, 24 of them with U.S. EPA. She spent the first
10 years of her legal career doing environmental and government contracting work with the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers in Kansas City and New York. In 1990, she began working for EPA
Region 2 as a Superfund enforcement attorney. Sites or cases of significance she has worked on
include U.S. v. Alcan Aluminum (a 2nd Circuit case involving divisibility); U.S. v. A&N
Cleaners (a S.D.N.Y. case involving owner liability of a lessee), and the Consolidated Iron and
Metal site (a large recycling site involving an innovative cash-out settlement). In addition to her
caseload, which runs the gamut from small owner-operator sites to large generator sites
involving thousands of parties, Ms. Berns has handled several administrative cases involving
EPCRA.
Ms. Berns received a B.S. degree from The George Washington University in 1974 and a J.D.
from the University of Kansas in 1980. She is a member of the National PRP Search
Enhancement Team and has participated in and spoken at a number of conferences.
MARTHA BOSWORTH
Martha Bosworth is an enforcement coordinator in EPA Regions 1's Office of Site Remediation
and Restoration, working primarily on PRP searches and cost recovery cases. She began her EPA
career in the Office of Water as an enforcement specialist in the NPDES program. In 1995, she
joined the Superfund program and has spent 15 years conducting PRP search and cost recovery
activities. Ms. Bosworth is a 1988 graduate of Trinity College of Vermont, formerly located in
Burlington, Vermont.
CINDY BROWN
Cynthia Brown has served as an Enforcement Officer in Region 6's Superfund Division since
2005. Prior to that she was a Team Leader in Superfund Finance where as a Certified Public
Accountant she was active in cost package preparation, and served as an expert witness for the
Superfund cost management system during litigation. Ms. Brown is the Finance Section Chief in
the Region 6 Incident Response Team, and teaches Incident Command System courses at OSC
Readiness Training and throughout the country. As one of the senior Enforcement Offices in
Region 6, she has been involved in some of the most contentious Superfund litigation in the
Southwest. She is currently handling the enforcement aspects of the Explo Systems case where
18 million pounds of unauthorized explosives were discovered. She is also active as a teacher
and presenter in PRP search courses taught to state and tribal communities in Region 6. Prior to
joining EPA, she was an auditor for the U.S. Government Accountability Office and Department
of Health and Human Services. She is a graduate of Truman State University in Northern
Missouri.
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NANCY DECK
Nancy Deck has worked for EPA since 1974. She recalls the early years of the Agency and the
excitement, energy, and enthusiasm that led the charge at that time. Through all the ups, downs,
and frustrations of the many administration changes through the years, she finds the work is still
rewarding and the EPA family one she is proud to be a part of. Nancy started out in Radiation
Programs, then moved to the Office of Solid Waste, and finally landed in the Office of Site
Remediation Enforcement where most of her years with EPA have been spent. Her work has run
the gamut from managing the early Technical Enforcement Support contracts (TES I, II, 11, and
12), to serving on the Agency's Allocation Pilot, which earned her a Bronze Medal, and serving
as Team Leader of the National PRP Search Enhancement Team for the last 12 years. The
Team's accomplishments under her leadership include the publication of two editions of the PRP
Search Manual (2003 and 2009) and an Addendum in 2012, development of the Superfund
Enforcement Directory (SPED), presentation of seven National Training Conferences on PRP
Search Enhancement, and development of PRP Search Basic Training. Nancy is eligible to retire,
but until she decides what she wants to be when she grows up, she plans to keep working with
the Team.
COURTNEY KUDLA
Courtney Kudla is an enforcement officer in the Region 6 Superfund Enforcement Assessment
Section. Ms. Kudla has worked for EPA since 2003. In her time with EPA, she has conducted
PRP searches for removal and remedial sites, assisted with public outreach during the Hurricane
Katrina response, and managed e-discovery for numerous Superfund litigation cases. Ms. Kudla
received her Bachelor of Science degree in sociology from Manchester College in 2001 and her
Master of Public Affairs degree from Indiana University in 2003.
ANDREA MADIGAN
Ms. Madigan is the CERCLA Supervisory Attorney for U.S. EPA Region 8's Legal Enforcement
Program, Office of Enforcement, Compliance, and Environmental Justice. Ms. Madigan is a
founding member and chair for EPA's National Bankruptcy Work Group. Ms. Madigan also
serves as an adjunct instructor for the Missouri University of Science and Technology.
Ms. Madigan joined EPA in 1990. Prior to joining EPA, Ms. Madigan was in private practice
specializing in bankruptcy and commercial litigation. Ms. Madigan received her J.D. from the
University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado in 1983.
CARLYN WINTER PRISK
Carlyn Winter Prisk has been a civil investigator in Region 3's Superfund program for 15 years.
As an investigator, Ms. Prisk currently conducts PRP searches at both removal and remedial sites
and also works extensively on cost recovery cases involving complicated or unique issues such
as insurance, receiverships, bankruptcy, corporate successorship, and limited ability to pay.
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Ms. Prisk received a M.S. degree in Criminology from St. Joseph's University in 1997 and began
her career with the U.S. Department of Labor. She has been a member of the National PRP
Search Enhancement Team for approximately 12 years and has participated in and spoken at a
number of conferences. Ms. Prisk is wife to Brian and mom to Kara, four fur babies, several fish,
and a frog. She spends much of her time outside of EPA in or around a swimming pool as an
age-group coach, PIAA official, and swimmer. In her spare time, Ms. Prisk volunteers at her
daughter's school, bakes, and enjoys reading, writing and, occasionally, sleeping.
MIKE RUDY
Mike Rudy is a civil investigator and senior enforcement specialist in EPA Region 8's Superfund
Cost Recovery Unit, and has been Region 8's representative on the National PRP Search
Enhancement Team for the last nine years. Mr. Rudy has been with Region 8 for 22 years,
serving as an inspector, enforcement officer, and civil investigator. Before EPA, he served as a
special agent with the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations for seven years. As an
agent, Mr. Rudy conducted criminal, fraud, counter-intelligence, and anti-terrorism
investigations. Mr. Rudy currently conducts complex civil investigations in the Region 8
Superfund program. Mr. Rudy received his B.S. from Valdosta State University in 1984 and his
M.P.A. from the University of Oklahoma in 1990. He has attended numerous advanced
investigative courses. He is married and has a son and three Japanese Akitas.
GRECHEN SCHMIDT
Grechen Schmidt is a civil investigator in EPA's Region 10. She joined EPA in 1988 as a
community involvement coordinator. Ms. Schmidt designed and managed Region 10's
Superfund Technical Assistance Grant Program (TAG) and helped develop the national
community involvement training material and the Department of Defense's community
involvement training. She served as EPA's technical expert on the Superfund process and TAG
programs in a criminal trial that resulted in a conviction and maximum jail sentence. From 1995
to 1997, Ms. Schmidt worked as a compliance officer in the Drinking Water program, focusing
on drinking water systems in the State of Washington. From 1997 to 1999, she took an
interagency personnel assignment to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to
help them develop the community involvement portion of their hazardous waste cleanup
program. In 2000, she became an investigator in the Office of Environmental Assessment. She
has provided interviewing and report writing training as a Basic Inspector Training instructor.
Today she is the sole civil investigator in Region 10 and is located in the Office of Regional
Counsel where she provides support to all regional programs.
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Chapter 1 - Introduction to CERCLA
WHAT Is CERCLA?
c
V^/
ERCLA" stands for the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act of 1980, as amended,1 also known as Superfund. The statute has
two primary objectives:
Reducing or eliminating threats to human health and the environment
posed by uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.
Responding to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances.
Superfund achieves these objectives by authorizing the federal government to identify parties
responsible for conditions at uncontrolled hazardous waste sites and to respond to those
conditions in order to eliminate or reduce their potential for releasing hazardous substances into
the environment. Prior to the enactment of CERCLA, it was not clear that the federal
government had such authority under existing environmental laws. A crucial element in
achieving CERCLA's overall objectives is the effort to identify potentially responsible parties
(PRPs) who may be legally liable for the contamination at a particular Superfund site.
This manual describes the basic elements of the PRP identification process or "PRP search." To
help you understand why certain steps in the PRP search are taken and how they relate to each
other, we will start with a description of the overall legal framework within which CERCLA
operates.
• Executive Orders. CERCLA grants the authorities described above to the president of
the United States. President Reagan delegated them to the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) by Executive Order (E.G.) 12580 on January 23, 1987.2 That E.G. and
E.G. 13016, issued by President Clinton on August 28, 1996, delegate certain additional
powers under CERCLA to other federal departments and agencies.
1 P.L. 96-510, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 to 9675. CERCLA has been amended several times.
The most extensive amendment was the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of
1986, P.L. 99-499 (SARA). See also the Asset Conservation, Lender Liability, and Deposit
Insurance Protection Act of 1996, P.L. 104-208 ("Lender Liability Amendments") and the Small
Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002, P.L. 107-118
("Brownfields Amendments").
2 An executive order is a rule or order issued by the president to all or a part of the
executive branch of the federal government.
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• Regulations. CERCLA directed the president to revise and republish the National Oil
and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP or "National Contingency
Plan"), which was first published in 1968 and later amended by the Clean Water Act to
include "procedures and standards for responding to releases of hazardous substances."
This revision provides detailed instructions for implementing CERCLA's response
authorities.
• EPA Policy and Guidance. EPA issues policy statements and guidance documents to
EPA employees to help them exercise CERCLA's response authorities in the real world.
EPA policy and guidance, which may be issued by either headquarters or individual
Regions, set forth the Agency's understanding of how CERCLA provisions apply in
specific circumstances, the factors that may be considered in applying those provisions,
and how the Agency should exercise its discretion in questionable cases. One of the
important functions these documents serve is to ensure national consistency in the
implementation of the Superfund program. Unlike statutes, executive orders, and
regulations, policy statements and guidance documents do not have the force of law.
They are purely advisory in nature, but since they are issued by EPA and are based on the
Agency's cumulative experience, they have a far-reaching influence on how the
Superfund program is implemented in specific cases.3
These elements of the legal framework can be depicted as a hierarchy with statutes serving as the
foundation:
Polic
& Guidance
EPAHQ
EPA Regions
Regulations
NCP(40CFR Part 300)
Executive Orders
E.G. 12580
E.O.13016
CERCLA
SARA
3 An index of current EPA headquarters policy and guidance may be found at
http://www. CDa.gov/supcrfund/policv/indcx. htm.
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Case Law. The meaning and application of CERCLA's provisions are frequently
litigated in federal court. The decisions of a U.S. District Court (the trial level), U.S.
Court of Appeals (first appellate level), and U.S. Supreme Court (final appellate level)
have the force of law within the particular court's territorial jurisdiction. They "feed
back" into CERCLA as definitive interpretations of its provisions.
• Site-Specific Documents. These include decision documents such as the
record of decision (ROD) or request for funding for a removal action
("Action Memo"), which describe the specific action that will be
implemented at a site and explain why it was chosen. Site-specific
documents also include settlement documents such as consent decrees
(CDs) and administrative settlement agreements and orders on consent (ASAOCs), which
set out the terms of agreements between EPA and responsible parties describing the
actions those parties must take to remedy the problems at a site. These documents
provide the legal authority to implement actions at a specific Superfund site.
How DOES CERCLA WORK?
CERCLA § 104(a) authorizes the president to respond to releases or threatened releases of
hazardous substances. As we saw above, this authority has been delegated to EPA. CERCLA
defines three kinds of response action - removal, remedial, and enforcement.
Removal and remedial actions usually involve direct cleanup work performed by PRPs or the
Agency at a site. Remedial actions tend to be larger in scale and longer in duration while removal
actions are generally short-term actions taken to protect human health and welfare or the
^ environment. Enforcement actions can be taken to encourage or compel
responsible parties to perform the removal or remedial work or to
reimburse EPA for performing it.4 EPA has adopted an "Enforcement
First" policy that assigns priority to enforcement. In other words, EPA
makes every effort to find responsible parties to perform removal and
remedial actions before spending tax dollars to perform them itself. The
"Enforcement First" policy therefore gives a high priority to conducting
thorough PRP searches.
EPA makes every effort
to find responsible
parties to perform
removal and remedial
actions.
Before the PRP search can get under way, however, EPA has to
determine whether CERCLA authorizes it to take any response action at
«* all. According to the statute, there are several conditions that have to be
satisfied before EPA can do so. Section 104(a) authorizes the president (i.e., EPA) to take any
response measure consistent with the NCP to protect public health or welfare or the environment
when there is a release or the substantial threat of a release of a hazardous substance into the
environment, or there is a release or the substantial threat of a release into the environment of a
pollutant or contaminant that may present an imminent and substantial danger to the public
health or welfare. Each of the underlined terms in this section is defined in CERCLA § 101 and
appears in the glossary at the end of this manual.
4 Enforcement includes EPA oversight of cleanup work performed by responsible parties.
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These determinations are made by regional counsel and other EPA officials before a PRP search
is authorized. Once authorized, the object of the PRP search is to identify parties who may be
legally liable for the cost of performing response actions at a site.
Liability criteria are set forth in CERCLA § 107(a). A party may be held liable when there is:
• a release or threatened release;
• of a hazardous substance;
• from a facility into the environment;
• that causes response costs to be incurred; and
• the party is included in a class of persons described in CERCLA § 107(a).
Section 107(a) lists four kinds of response cost for which a party who satisfies these conditions
may be held liable, namely the cost of:
• actions taken by the United States, a State, or an Indian tribe that are not inconsistent with
the NCP;
• actions taken by other parties that are consistent with the NCP;
• natural resource damage restoration; and
• health assessments performed by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
(ATSDR).
The classes of liable person defined in section 107(a) include the following:
• the current owner and operator of a facility;
• the owner or operator of a facility at the time hazardous substances were disposed of;
a person who arranged for disposal or treatment of hazardous substances; and
a person who transported and chose the disposal location of hazardous substances.
The object of a PRP search is to identify all the parties who fit into one of the
four classes of person at a site or facility where there has been a release or
threatened release of a hazardous substance and who can therefore be held
responsible or liable for response costs. You may wonder why we talk about a
potentially responsible party search instead of a responsible party search. This is
because PRPs may have certain liability defenses available to them or may fall into special
categories of persons who are exempt from liability under the statute. We will discuss these
defenses and exemptions in the next chapter. In practice, the term "PRP" is commonly used
interchangeably with "responsible party" or "liable party."
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CERCLA LIABILITY
The liability imposed by CERCLA is strict, retroactive, and joint and several. We will discuss
these in turn.
Strict Liability. This means that a party may be held liable even if the problems caused
by the release of hazardous substances were unforeseeable, the party's actions were not
unlawful at the time they occurred, or the party used state-of-the-art waste management
practices when the hazardous substances were disposed of or released. You can see why
this is called "strict" liability. EPA does not have to prove that a party's actions were
negligent. Moreover, the party cannot get "off the hook" by showing that his actions were
perfectly legal at the time he performed them or that he used the best available waste
management practices.
• Retroactive Liability. This simply means that a party may be held liable for the
consequences of actions that took place before CERCLA was enacted.
• Joint and Several Liability. This means that (1) every party who
contributed to the contamination at a site is liable for the response costs
incurred in addressing it, and (2) each and every such party or any sub-
group of such parties may be held liable for the total amount of those
costs. Most people understand what several liability is (everyone pays his
share) but sometimes have trouble with joint liability. If you go to happy hour with your
friends after work and the waiter asks you if you want to "run a tab," he is asking you to
agree to assume joint liability for the bill. If you agree, and your friends begin to drift
away, and you fail to collect any money from them before they go, and you are the last
person left at the table, what happens? You have to pay the whole bill yourself. You have
just experienced the "joint" part of joint and several liability.
What do these aspects of CERCLA liability have to do with the PRP search? They multiply the
number of possible PRPs and broaden the scope of the search. For example, retroactive liability
means that the search may cover parties and actions that occurred many years ago. Likewise,
strict liability limits liability defenses to those expressly set out in the statute. Moreover, joint
and several liability may influence search strategy by encouraging parties who are identified
early in the process or who have "deep pockets" to help identify other PRPs.
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Section 1.1 ("Overview of CERCLA"), 2009 edition
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
EPA Superfund Enforcement Web page
http ://www2. epa. gov/enforcement/superfund-enforcement
EPA CERCLA Overview Web page
http://www2.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-comprehensive-environmental-response-
compensation-and-liability-act
National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (40 CFR Part 300)
http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/40cfr300_03.html
EPA Superfund Cleanup Policies and Guidance Documents
http://cfpub.epa.gov/compliance/resources/policies/cleanup/superfund/
EPA Superfund Liability Web page
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/superfund-liability
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Chapter 2 - Liability Overview
DEFENSES AND EXEMPTIONS
In Chapter 1, we reviewed the liability criteria set forth in section 107(a) of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), but
noted that the statute also provides a number of defenses to and exemptions from liability.
This is why a potentially responsible party (PRP) is not exactly the same as a responsible or
liable party. A party may satisfy all the section 107(a) criteria, but still be able to avoid liability if
he can successfully assert a defense or qualify for an exemption.
PRPs' claims to defenses and exemptions are evaluated by regional counsel and other EPA
officials, but the evidence they look at is collected during the information-gathering phase of the
PRP search, which will be discussed later in this manual. It is important for those conducting the
search to be aware of the defenses and exemptions that may be claimed by PRPs so as to be
sensitive to information that might impact them.
You will see that the common denominator among all these defenses and exemptions is that each
creates a possible exception to the strict liability described in Chapter 1.
Third-Party Defense
Section 107(b) provides that a party is not liable if a release was caused solely by an:
act of God;
act of war; or
• act or omission of a third party.
"Acts of God," which are calamities such as floods and hurricanes, and acts of war are not used
as defenses very often simply because the types of event they rely on are, fortunately, infrequent.
Reliance on the third-party defense, however, is quite common, and CERCLA § 107(b)(3) lists
several conditions that a party must satisfy to assert the defense successfully:
• The act or omission was performed by someone other than the PRP.
The PRP had no direct or indirect contractual relationship with the third party.1
The PRP exercised due care with respect to the released hazardous substances; and
• The PRP took precautions against foreseeable acts or omissions of the third party.
1 "Contractual relationship" is defined at CERCLA § 101(35) and appears in the glossary.
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CERCLA places the burden of proving all of the above on the party asserting the defense.
Service Station Dealer Exemption
CERCLA § 1 14(c) creates an exemption from arranger or transporter liability
under section 107(a)(3) or (4), respectively, in favor of service station dealers
who accept used oil from the public for recycling. In order to qualify for the
exemption, the recycled oil may not be mixed with any other hazardous
substance and must be stored, treated, transported, and otherwise managed in compliance with
regulations issued under section 3014 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and the
recycling transaction must have occurred after the regulations were issued on May 3, 1993.
A service station dealer may still be held liable as a current or former owner or operator under
CERCLA§107(a)(l)or(2).
State and Local Government Exemptions
Under CERCLA § 107(d), a state or local government cannot be held liable for costs or damages
resulting from an emergency response to a release or threatened release of hazardous substances
unless its actions amount to gross negligence or intentional misconduct.
CERCLA § 101(20)(A) also exempts units of state and local government from owner and
operator liability when they involuntarily acquire CERCLA facilities as long as they did not
cause or contribute to the contamination. These governmental units often acquire contaminated
property involuntarily when the property is abandoned, tax-delinquent, seized, forfeited, or
subject to foreclosure in connection with a government loan. Governmental entities in this
situation may also be able to assert the third-party defense successfully.
Secured Creditors
CERCLA § 101(20)(A) and (E) create an exemption from owner/operator liability in favor of
secured creditors. These are persons who hold "indicia of ownership" of a facility primarily to
protect a security interest in the facility. Examples include mortgage lenders who formally take
legal title to the mortgaged property as security for repayment of the mortgage loan. CERCLA
restricts the exemption to secured creditors who do not "participate in management" of the
facility. Section 101(20)(F) explains that participating in management means either exercising
decision-making control over environmental compliance at the facility or exercising managerial
control over day-to-day environmental compliance decisions or substantially all the operational
functions of the facility other than environmental compliance.
Recyclers
The Superfund Recycling Equity Act of 1999 (SREA) added section 127 to
CERCLA, exempting certain parties who "arrange for recycling of recyclable
materials" from arranger and transporter liability. Recyclable materials include
scrap paper, plastic, glass, textiles rubber, and metal; spent lead-acid and nickel-cadmium
batteries; and other types of spent battery. Owners and operators of sites are not eligible for the
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exemption, nor are arrangers and transporters of non-recyclable materials or recyclable materials
that do not meet the criteria of section 127. The PRP has the burden of proving he is entitled to
the exemption.
Landowner Liability Protections
The Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002,
better known as the Brownfields Amendments, either clarified existing or added \
new liability protections for certain classes of landowner.
Innocent Landowner. Section 101(35) defines three types of innocent landowner:
(1) persons who at the time they acquired a facility did not know and had no reason to
know that the hazardous substances released or threatened to be released had been
disposed of there; (2) governmental entities that acquired facilities through any
involuntary transfer or acquisition or through the exercise of eminent domain; and (3)
parties who acquired a facility by inheritance or bequest. In order to qualify as the first of
these types, the landowners must demonstrate that they performed "all appropriate
inquiries" into the previous uses and ownership of the property before they acquired it.
EPA subsequently issued a detailed regulation setting forth the requirements for
conducting all appropriate inquiries (AAI).
Contiguous Property Owner. CERCLA § 107(q) defines a contiguous property owner
as one whose property was contaminated solely by a release from a contiguous or
"similarly situated" property owned by someone else. Contiguous property owners have
a defense to owner liability if they (1) are not a PRP or affiliated with a PRP; (2) did not
cause, contribute, or consent to the release of hazardous substances; and (3) conducted
AAI prior to purchase and demonstrate that they did not know or have reason to know of
the contamination.
Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser. In contrast to the innocent landowner and contiguous
property owner defenses, the bona fide prospective purchaser (BFPP) defense under
CERCLA § 101(40) works even when the purchasers knew that the property they were
purchasing was contaminated. As you might expect, however, there are several
conditions to be satisfied in order to take advantage of the defense:
• The facility must have been purchased after January 11, 2002.
The purchaser must not be a PRP or affiliated with a PRP.
• The purchaser must have performed AAI.
• The purchaser must have taken reasonable steps to stop any continuing releases and
threatened future releases, and
• The purchaser must comply with all land use restrictions and institutional controls
affecting the property.2
2 EPA defines institutional controls as "administrative and legal controls that minimize
the potential for human exposure to contamination and protect the integrity of remedies by
limiting land or resource use, providing information to modify behavior, or both."
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Other Exemptions
In addition to the landowner liability protections, the Brownfields Amendments added two
statutory exemptions:
• De Micromis Contributors. CERCLA § 107(o) exempts from arranger liability parties
who contributed less than 100 gallons of liquid material or 200 pounds of solid material
containing hazardous substances to a site.
• Municipal Solid Waste. CERCLA § 107(p) creates an exemption in favor of residential
property owner, operators, or lessees; small businesses; and charitable organizations who
dispose of municipal solid waste (MSW) at sites on the national priorities list (NPL).3
The statute defines MSW as household waste and waste generated by other commercial,
industrial, or institutional entities that is essentially the same as household waste.
Enforcement Discretion
EPA can exercise
, ,. . , ,, , . T™ . . ,. . discretion to avoid
In addition to statutory defenses and exemptions, EPA exercises discretion imoosina undue
hardship.
in enforcing CERCLA in a number of situations where either the statute
grants discretion or adhering to the letter of the law would impose undue
hardship on PRPs without advancing the goals of the Superfund program.
Orphan Share. The orphan share is the portion of cleanup costs
that cannot be assessed to a PRP either because the PRP is insolvent
or because EPA simply cannot identify the PRP. Under joint and
several liability, other PRPs could be forced to absorb these costs. In
the interests of concluding a settlement promptly and avoiding
potentially protracted and expensive litigation over the issue, EPA may choose in some
cases to absorb these costs itself.
• De Minimis Settlements. Under CERCLA § 122(g), EPA may expedite settlements that
involve only "a minor portion of the response costs at the facility concerned." If EPA
determines that such settlements are practicable and in the public interest, the statute
directs it to enter into them "as promptly as possible". PRPs may qualify for de minimis
settlement if the hazardous substances contributed to the facility are minimal in terms of
both quantity and hazardous effects in comparison to the rest of the hazardous substances
found there or if they qualify as de minimis innocent landowners.
• Residential Owners. EPA generally does not take enforcement actions against owners of
residential property when certain conditions are met (e.g., the property owner's activities
did not lead to the release or threatened release of hazardous substances).
Contaminated Aquifers. An aquifer is an underground, water-bearing, geological
formation. Water is usually not static within aquifers but commonly migrates within and
The NPL is the list of the highest priority sites for long-term remedial action.
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through them. EPA generally does not take enforcement action against owners of
property that has been contaminated solely as the result of subsurface migration of
hazardous substances within an aquifer from a source or sources outside the property.
Ability to Pay. So far we have discussed PRP liability, but another important factor that
EPA considers is "viability." In other words, the PRP must have the financial
wherewithal to pay response costs. Under its general ability to pay (ATP) policy, EPA
has refrained from imposing full liability on PRPs where doing so threatened to put a
company out of business or impose undue financial hardship on either businesses or
individuals. The Brownfields Amendments specifically authorized EPA to negotiate a
settlement based on a PRP's ability to pay rather than on its full liability or to consider
"alternative payment methods" if a PRP is unable to pay the full amount of its liability at
the time of settlement. Under both EPA's enforcement discretion and the Brownfields
Amendments, it is up to the party claiming ATP status to provide EPA with the
information it needs to evaluate the party's claim.
SETTLEMENTS
We said in Chapter 1 that the PRP search is the first step in the CERCLA
enforcement process. In the following chapters we will discuss the "nuts and bolts"
of performing searches, but it may be a good idea here to jump ahead and briefly
discuss the ultimate goal of the PRP search, which is to achieve a settlement in
which the PRP agrees either to perform the site cleanup or to reimburse EPA for
performing it.
There are two types of settlement, administrative and judicial. Administrative settlements are
arranged directly between EPA and the PRP(s). They do not involve the courts unless EPA needs
to take additional enforcement action against a PRP who is not abiding by the terms of the
agreement. Administrative settlements - the most common type is an ASAOC - are typically
used for removal actions and remedial investigations/feasibility studies (RI/FSs).
A judicial settlement is one approved by a federal court. CERCLA § 120(d) requires that any
settlement involving a remedial action must be entered as a consent decree in a U.S. District
Court. The agreement between EPA and the PRP(s) takes the form of an order or "decree" of the
court and must first be approved by the U.S. Attorney General. De minimis settlements under
CERCLA § 122(g) must be embodied in consent decrees if response costs at the facility in
question exceed $500,000, unless the Agency has received prior approval from the Attorney
General to proceed administratively.
Before moving on to the "nuts and bolts" chapters, it may be useful to provide you with process
timelines for the three kinds of removal action (emergency, time-critical, and non-time-critical)
and remedial actions. These should help you understand the sequence of PRP search activities
that ultimately lead to settlement.
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EMERGENCY REMOVAL PRP S
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-12-
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-13-
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REFERENCES
CERCLA Lender Liability Exemption: Updated Questions and Answers
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/fact-sheet-updated-questions-and-answers-cercla-lender-
liability-exemption
Interim Guidance on the Municipal Solid Waste Exemption Under CERCLA Section 107(p)
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/interim-guidance-municipal-solid-waste-exemption-under-
superfund
Superfund Recycling Equity Act of 1999: Factors To Consider In A CERCLA Enforcement Case
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-superfund-recycling-equity-act-exemption-factors
Interim Enforcement Discretion Guidance Regarding Contiguous Property Owners
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/interim-guidance-enforcement-discretion-regarding-
contiguous-property-owners
Interim Guidance on Orphan Share Compensation for Settlors
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-orphan-share-compensation-rdra-and-non-time-
critical-removal-settlors
Orphan Share Reform Implementation Update
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-updates-implementation-orphan-share-reform
Interim Guidance on the Ability to Pay and De Minimis Revisions to CERCLA § 122(g) by the
Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-abilitv-pay-and-de-minimis-revisions-cercla-
section-122g-2002-brownfield
General Policy on Superfund Ability to Pay Determinations
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-superfund-abilitv-pay-determinations
Policy Toward Owners of Residential Property at Superfund Sites
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-owners-residential-property-superfund-sites
Policy Toward Owners of Property Containing Contaminated Aquifers
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-owners-property-containing-contaminated-aquifers
EPA Negotiating Superfund Settlements Web page
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/negotiating-superfund-settlements
EPA Recovering Cleanup Costs Web page
http ://www2. epa. gov/enforcement/superfund-cost-recovery
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Chapter 3 - Gathering Information
he objective of information gathering is to locate and obtain copies of all records pertinent
to the site and relevant to the potentially responsible party (PRP) search. Before you begin
the search for records, it is important to keep in mind that information gathering is not a linear
process. Conducting a thorough PRP search often means revisiting sources and digging through
them repeatedly. Relevant records may include almost anything related to the site. Examples of
relevant records include correspondence, maps, hazardous waste manifests, technical reports,
permits, violations, investigations, site owner records, litigation files, bankruptcy files, local
newspaper accounts, and on-line information. The difficulty and amount of time needed to
complete information gathering depend on the specific site.
Site complexity is often a function of site
size. In general, smaller sites tend to have
a limited number of owners, operators, and
sources of contamination. Sites that span a
large geographic area tend to have many
different owners, operators, and sources of
contamination. An example of a small site
is a contaminated metal plating facility,
while an example of a large site is an
industrial park with ground water
contamination. The metal plating facility is
likely to have a limited number of
owner/operator PRPs. An industrial park
will have a much larger number of
owners/operators, and each may have to be
evaluated for sources of contamination.
The industrial park may also have a long
history of operation and many of the
historical operators who caused the
pollution may no longer be located at the
site or even in business. Although the size
of a site is not always a determining factor
in its complexity, it is important to get an
idea of how big a site is before beginning
the search in order to estimate the
resources required for the search and to
allocate them appropriately. This picture
illustrates the Portland Harbor site, which
involves hundreds of PRPs and potential
sources of contamination.
PORTLAND HARBOR CLEANUP SITES
Sit* ftourc* control prtorifry
—«-.«
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ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SOURCES
A good starting point for any search is EPA databases for existing data on the site. Many
Superfund sites may have come to the attention of EPA programs other than Superfund,
including Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) corrective action, air, or water.
Documents maintained in these databases and program files may include permits, inspection
reports, correspondence, records of violations, enforcement actions, and criminal violations.
Things to look for in these documents include the names of people associated with the site
(current and former employees), descriptions of site operations, owners or lease holders, names
of customers, and photographs and maps. These records are potential sources of information on
site history, identity of PRPs, and additional contacts.
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-18-
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EPA is not the only source of environmental data. Other federal agencies, state environmental
agencies, and local government agencies may also collect similar environmental permit and
enforcement data that can be useful in identifying PRPs and implementing site response actions.
The usefulness of other federal agency records will depend on the site location and sources of
contamination. Many Superfund sites are located on federal land or have federal agencies as
PRPs. State environmental agencies may be involved with cleaning up contaminated sites before
EPA gets involved, and may already have identified some PRPs. A local fire department report
from a hazardous waste spill or plat maps from zoning departments are examples of types of
useful local government record. Before you begin searching through state and local records, it is
a good idea to familiarize yourself with how the state and local governments are structured as
department and agency names are not uniform. Using all available information sources, try to
identify patterns of non-compliance and hazardous materials use. This will help develop a
complete picture of all environmental problems at a site.
BUSINESS RECORDS
PRP searchers collect
information about all the
business entities that may
have operated at a site.
Information gathering is not just about collecting environmental
records. It also includes collecting information on the business entities
that may have operated at a site throughout its history. Collecting
information about businesses can be difficult due to corporate name
changes, mergers, acquisitions, and sale of corporate assets. Information
about this type of business activity can be obtained from state agencies,
including the secretary of state or revenue departments. Larger
companies also may have corporate histories on their websites,
including dates of important acquisitions and mergers. A more in-depth
discussion of corporate history may be found in Chapter 7.
HISTORICAL RECORDS
Industrial uses at some Superfund sites may span 100 years or more. Site configurations and
industrial uses have often changed in the course of the site's history. The person conducting the
PRP search may need to investigate the entire site history as any information on historical site
owners and operations may be useful for identifying PRPs. Little information of this kind,
however, is likely to be found in federal or state environmental databases. Local sources, such as
libraries, universities, and historical societies, will probably be more helpful.
One important source of historic business information is Polk directories. These were city
directories published by a private company in the early 20th century that are often found in
collections at historical societies and libraries. These directories can be searched by street
address or type of business. Using the site address as a reference point, you can search through
yearly volumes for information on businesses operating there. You can also investigate
neighboring properties and determine if they had the same owners.
-19-
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Sanborn Maps are another important historical information tool. Originally created for assessing
fire insurance liability in urban areas, they can provide historical building information and street
names. The maps were published beginning in 1867 and are typically updated every 10 years.
The maps themselves are large-scale lithographed street plans at a scale of 50 feet to one inch on
21-inch by 25-inch sheets of paper. Many Sanborn maps are made available through public or
university libraries or, most comprehensively, through the Library of Congress. They can also be
purchased through private companies. Sanborn maps can be very useful if the buildings at a site
have changed dramatically over time. If you are able to determine when a certain type of
building was constructed, you may be able to get an idea of when specific industrial operations
began on site. Below is an example of a typical Sanborn map.
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One of the most important guides to information gathering is the online bibliography Potentially
Responsible Party Internet Information Sources (PRPIIS) compiled by EPA employees. The
guide provides internet links to and a short description of all known sources of information for
conducting PRP searches, including both government and private sources. Types of information
-20-
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referenced include businesses, government agencies, legal resources, investigative resources,
maps and aerial photographs, and technical guides. PRPIIS includes both free and fee-for-service
sources.
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Crunc statistics and court statisiic infonuation;
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Starch Federal land records, surveys, plats, field
notes, slams, etc.
Provides reports on BLM land and iiuncr.il use
authorizations for oil. gas. and gcoihenual
leasing. rigtils-of-\vays. coal and oilier mineral
development, land and inincnl title, mining
chum. \vit1idmwals.classUlc3tioiis. and more
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Link lo die Bureau of Prisons. It includes the
ability to search for inmates who have been
located in federal prisons.
Link to United Stales census information.
Link lo pre-established sets of census
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Link to county websites.
Lint lo federal court information.
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A few of the more important fee-for-service databases include Accurant, CLEAR, PACER, and
LexisNexis®. These services allow for "global" searching across the nation, and in some
instances can locate valuable information that may not be found easily in other public records,
including information on the location of individuals, business records, newspaper records, and
legal cases. These databases typically allow you to search using a person's or company's name
and will return search results on all available records pertaining to the searched name or term.
Information gathering is only one component of a thorough PRP search. We will discuss several
more in the following chapters, including CERCLA information-gathering authorities. This
chapter should have provided you with a useful preliminary overview of some major information
resources. Browsing through PRPIIS and available EPA databases is the best way to familiarize
yourself with the kind of information they contain. With experience and guidance from seasoned
PRP searchers, you will become comfortable and proficient using these databases and other
investigative tools.
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Checklists in Appendices B and C
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources (PRPIIS)
See Appendix C.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
http ://www. sec, gov/edgar. shtml
Environmental Data Resources: Sanborn Maps
http://edrnet.com/prods/sanborn-maps/
EPA Records Web page
http ://www. epa. gov/records/
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Chapter 4 - Issuing Information and
Site Access Requests
Section 104(e) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act (CERCLA) authorizes EPA to request information and gain access to areas
containing hazardous substances. Issuing information request letters is a basic element of
nearly every potentially responsible party (PRP) search. EPA is authorized to issue request letters
to any person, including business entities and government agencies, who may have information
about a site, not just to persons who may be PRPs. This authority is delegated to specific
officials within each EPA Region.
104(e) LETTERS
Under CERCLA § 104(e)(2), EPA may require any person who has or may have information
relevant to any of the following to furnish information or documentation relating to them:
• The identification, nature, and quantity of materials which have been or are generated,
treated, stored, or disposed of at a vessel or facility or transported to a vessel or facility.
• The nature or extent of a release or threatened release of a hazardous substance or
pollutant or contaminant at or from a vessel or facility.
• Information relating to the ability of a person to pay for or perform a cleanup.
Issuing information
request letters is a basic
element of nearly every
PRP search.
This provision equips EPA with a powerful tool for information gathering.
There are several steps that should be taken before sending a "104(e) letter,"
however, that will save time and help ensure that you receive useful
information in response. Before drafting an information request letter, the
PRP search team should determine what information is needed to:
• identify PRPs (e.g., manifest data, names, addresses);
• determine PRPs' liability (including possible defenses); and
• conduct future investigations or response actions (e.g., physical
characteristics of the site, historical data, sampling data).
It is also important to develop a complete list of the parties from whom you intend to seek
information. A 104(e) letter should be sent to anyone with a connection to the site. This includes
current owners, individuals and businesses you have discovered during your research,
individuals and businesses you have discovered from initial responses to 104(e) letters, and
owners and operators of neighboring properties. Section 104(e) letters should be drafted with
input from both attorneys and the case team working on the search.
-24-
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It is also important to communicate in the proper tone, which will differ depending on the party
receiving the letter. A small business or an individual may not have much technical knowledge
or access to an attorney and may find letters confusing if they contain too much technical or legal
jargon. Large companies, on the other hand, are likely to have attorneys on their staffs who are
experienced at responding to 104(e) letters. Letters addressed to them should be as specific as
possible to prevent them from justifiably providing vague responses.
APR or
UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
REGION IX
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
VIA Certified Mai): 7010 0290 0003 2276 3987
Mr. Robert A. Igcr
President
Walt Disney Company
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, California 91521
Re: Request for Information Pursuant to CERCLA Section 104(e);
San Fernando Valley Area 2 Superfund Site - Glendale Chromium Operable Unit;
500 South Buena Vista Street. Burbank. California 91521
THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION SUPERCEDES EPA's DECEMBER 14th, 2010
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION1.
Dear Mr. Igen
The United Slates Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") is spending public funds to
investigate and respond to actual or threatened releases of hazardous substances at the San
Fernando Valley Area 2 Superfund Site. Glendale Chromium Operable Unit ("Chromium OU"),
which is located in Los Angeles County. California. A Superfund site is a site contaminated with
hazardous substances at levels that may present a threat to human health or the environment.
EPA believes that the Wall Disney Company ("Disney") may have information about current
and former industrial operations ai 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA. EPA needs the
information and documents responsive to this request to proceed with this Superfund Site
investigation. We appreciate your2 cooperation with this request.
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980,42
U.S.C. §§ 9601-9675, as amended ("CERCLA" or "Superfund"), authorizes EPA to investigate
and, if necessary, take action to proteci human health and the environment at locations where
' EPA has made some adjustments to the questions in Enclosure B. A response from Disney to the December 14*,
2010 ItW(e) lellej from EPA is not necessary.
J In Ihis letlcr. and the enclosures 10 this Icltcr. the terms "property," "person," "you," and other terms used herein
arc defined under the "Definitions'" heading in Enclosure A of Ihis letter (attached I.
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Page 2
there has been a release or threat of a release of a hazardous substance to the environment.
Section I04(e) of CERCLA authorizes EPA to require persons with information related to
hazardous substances releases to provide such information.
EPA has broad information gathering authority which allows EPA to require persons to furnish
information or documents relating to:
• The identification, nature, and quantity of materials which have been or are generated,
treated, stored, or disposed of at a vessel or facility or transported to a vessel or facility.
• The nature or extent of a release or threatened release of a hazardous substance, pollutant or
contaminant at or from a vessel or facility.
• The ability of a person to pay for or perform a cleanup.
We encourage you to give this request for information your immediate attention. Instructions on
how to respond to the questions are provided in Enclosure A. Your response to this letter should
be made in writing, signed by you or your duly authorized representative, and returned to EPA
within thirty (30) calendar days of your receipt of this letter. You may provide your response
and attachments electronically in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) and deliver them to
EPA by CDROM or through E-Mail, but you must mail a signed hardcopy of the letter portion
with your responses to the EPA.
Your compliance with this information request is mandatory. Pursuant to Section 104(e) of
CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. § 9604(c), you must respond completely and truthfully to all questions
contained in Enclosure B to this letter. Please be further advised that 18 U.S.C. § 1001 provides
for criminal penalties for the provision of false, fictitious or fraudulent statements or
representations. Failure to respond fully and truthfully may result in enforcement action by EPA
pursuant to Section 104(e)(5) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. Section 9604{e){5). The CERCLA
statutory provision authorizes EPA to seek the imposition of penalties of up to 532,500 per day
of noncompliance.
EPA understands that you may consider some of the requested information confidential. You
may not withhold the information on that basis. If you wish EPA to treat the information
confidentially, you must advise EPA of that fact by following the procedures outlined in
Enclosure A, including providing support for your claim of confidentiality.
If you have information about other persons who may have information which could assist the
Agency in its investigation, that information should be submitted within the timeframe noted
above.
Please note that this request for information is not subject to review by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act because it is not an
"information collection request" within the meaning of 44 U.S.C. §§ 3502(3), 3507, 3512, and
3518(c)(I). Furthermore, it is exempt from OMB review under the Paperwork Reduction Act
because it is directed to fewer than ten persons. 44 U.S.C. § 3502(4), (11); 5 C.F.R. § 1320.4
and§ 1320.6(a).
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Page 3
Your response to this request for information should be mailed within thirty (30) calendar days
following receipt of this letter, and be directed to:
Andrew Taylor
Case Developer, Mail Stop SFD-7-5
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
Email: taylor.andrew@epa.gov
If you have questions regarding this information request, please contact Andrew Taylor at 415-
972-3129 or by email at Taylor.Andrew@epa.gov. If you have questions about the history of the
Chromium OU, the nature of the environmental conditions at the Chromium OU, or the status of
cleanup activities, please contact Lisa Hanusiak at 415-972-3152, Hanusiak.Lisa@epa.gov.
Please direct any legal questions to Thomas Butler at 415-972-3869 or by email at
But ler.Thomas @ cpa. gov.
We appreciate your response to this information request, and look forward to cooperatively
working with you on these matters.
Kalherme Moore, Manager
Case Development /Cost Recovery Section
Site Cleanup Branch
Superfund Division
Larry Moore, California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles
Samuel Linger, California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles
Robert Antonopolis, Walt Disney Company
Enclosures (2)
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Tracking 104(e) requests can be difficult, especially at large sites. Before sending out any letters,
develop a tracking system to record who has received letters, who has responded, and the
responses themselves. Your tracking system should do the following:
assign a tracking number to each recipient,
• indicate the delivery status of each letter (e.g., delivered, refused, undelivered), and
• indicate the response status of each letter (e.g., no response, partial response, complete
response).
Databases and spreadsheets can be used to assist with tracking. Information request letters should
be sent via certified mail, priority mail, or air courier. Request a return receipt so EPA can
confirm that the letter was received. Responses received should be reviewed to identify missing
information or items that need clarification. A follow-up letter can be sent to request missing
information or clarify responses.
Not responding to 104(e) requests or providing incomplete responses may result from recipients
misunderstanding the questions or failing to appreciate EPA's authority to obtain the requested
information. Complete and prompt responses are most likely if you take steps to prevent or
correct these problems. One way to do this is to set up a toll-free "hotline" to assist recipients
with routine questions. Another is to provide a "plain English" fact sheet along with the 104(e)
letter that addresses frequently asked questions and explains EPA's statutory authority.
Files obtained from respondents may be subject to a confidential business information (CBI)
claim. CBI is confidential information relating to the respondent's business activities, e.g., a
business process secret, and is protected from disclosure under federal law. Information
requested by EPA may also be subject to a claim of privilege. The most common privileges that
respondents claim are attorney work product, attorney-client, and deliberative process. Privileged
documents do not have to be released to EPA or the courts.
ANALYZING RESPONSES
Analyzing responses is among the most important elements of the PRP search.
Responses to information requests should be reviewed and analyzed for
information that:
links a party to the site;
establishes a party's liability;
establishes a party's financial viability; and
provides leads to additional information about the party, the site, or other PRPs.
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Responses may help the PRP search team develop a history of site activities and involvement of
various parties in the treatment or disposal of hazardous substances.
Once the due date for response has expired and the responses have been reviewed, the PRP
search manager should coordinate with an attorney on appropriate follow-up actions. These may
include:
• issuing follow-up letters to unresponsive parties;
• issuing administrative orders to compel compliance;
• initiating judicial action to compel compliance; or
sending 104(e) letters to additional persons identified in the first round of 104(e)
responses.
SITE ACCESS
As mentioned above, CERCLA also authorizes EPA to gain site access under
certain circumstances. CERCLA § 104(e)(3) authorizes EPA at reasonable times
to enter any vessel, facility, establishment, or other place or property:
• where a hazardous substance or pollutant or contaminant may be or has been generated,
stored, treated, disposed of, or transported from.
• from or to which a hazardous substance or pollutant or contaminant has been or may have
been released;
• where such release is or may be threatened; or
• where entry is needed to determine the need for response or the appropriate response or
to effectuate a response action.
Property owners must grant access in writing before EPA or its contractors may enter onto a site.
Therefore an access agreement should be drafted and sent to all owners of the property. Most
such access agreements follow a standard template. Access should not be open-ended; the
agreement should describe what activities EPA plans to conduct at the site and include a
schedule for access that will allow EPA enough time to complete its work at the site. The
agreement should also ensure that the site owner or a representative may be present when EPA
personnel are on site. It is often helpful to contact the site owner informally before sending out
an access agreement. This gives the owner advance warning and the opportunity to try to
schedule EPA's access so as not to interfere unduly with normal business activities.
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UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
REGION 1
5 POST OFFICE SQUARE. SUITE 100
BOSTON. MA 02109-3912
URGENT LEGAL MATTER . PROMPT REPLY NECESSARY
CERTIFIED MAIL . RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
DATE:
October 06,2011
NAME: Ms. Dominique M, Gabriel, President,
Crane River Condominiums (East) Trust
ADDRESS: 33 Water Street, Unit 22,
Danvers, MA01923
Re:
REQUEST FOR ACCESS TO PROPERTY
Crane River Condominiums (East) Trust
27 - 33 Water Street, Danvers, MA 01923
Dear Ms. Gabriel:
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) respectfully requests permission for
EPA, its agents, contractors, and other authorized representatives to have access to the property
located at 27 - 33 Water Street, Danvers. MA. The property is further defined at the Essex
County South District Registry of Deeds in Book 9131, Page 510, as amended, being the
organization of Unit Owners of Crane River Condominium (East), a condominium established by
Master Deed dated August 12, 1987 and recorded with said Registry in Book 9131, Page 491, as
amended.
EPA requests access to the property to conduct a limited preliminary assessment and site
investigation (PA/SI) at the Creese and Cook II Site (Site). A PA/SI is necessary to evaluate the
potential danger to public health and/or the environment posed by the release or threat of release
of hazardous substances. The type of activities which EPA expects to perform include:
• Taking surface and subsurface soil samples as may be determined necessary-
• Excavating holes for subsurface investigation
• Reviewing and copying any documentation found on-site regarding materials,
including hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants, or hazardous waste.
that were generated, treated, stored or disposed of at the Site.
EPA also requests access to documentation which provides information about materials,
including hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants, or hazardous waste, that were
generated, treated, stored, or disposed of at the Site. In addition, if you have information and
lntam»IAddr»M(URU- http .vwww apaoov.'wgionl OUI
>Pnnlxl with V«^»libl« oil B«t«d Inks on R«cycl«i Pipw (Minimum 30S Po>leon«umw|
-30-
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documentation regarding other parties involved in the activities which may have resulted in
contamination at the Site, you should contact Cindy lewis at the EPA Office of Environmental
Stewardship at (617) 918-1889.
EPA is allowed to seek this information and conduct such investigations pursuant to Section
104(e) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980.
as amended ("CERCLA"), 42 U.S.C. .9604(e). The authorization provided by CERCLA
includes access to private property for the purpose of determining the need for response actions,
performing response actions, and/or enforcing CERCLA.
Please signify your consent to access by signing the attached document in the space provided,
and return it to me at the following address:
Ted Bazenas, On-Scene Coordinator
U. S. EPA - New England, Region 1
5 Post Office Square, Suite 100 - OSRR02-2
Boston, MA 02109-3912
The access agreement must be signed by owners, operators or their authorized representatives of
the property. Please provide the name, address, and telephone number of a designated contact for
future communications. Please reply this request within ten (10) business days of your receipt
of this letter. Enclosed with this letter is a fact sheet responding to frequently asked questions
about EPA's authority to access property under CERCLA.
Site file: Creese and Cook II Site Files
Cindy Lewis, EPA Enforcement Counsel
Martha Bosworth. Enforcement Coordinator
Your cooperation in assisting with completion of activities at the Site is appreciated. If you have
any questions, I may be contacted at (617) 918-1230. All communications from your legal
counsel should be directed to Cindy Lewis of the EPA Office of Environmental Stewardship at
(617)918-1889.
Sincerely,
Ted Bazenas, On-Scene Coordinator
Emergency Response & Removal Section I
Enclosure
cc:
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Owners should be given a period of 10-14 days to respond to an access letter. If
there is no response within that period, send a follow-up request via certified mail
or, if possible, deliver the letter by hand. Make sure you are documenting all
attempts to contact the owner, such as phone calls, e-mails, and letters. If all other
attempts are unsuccessful, EPA can petition a court to obtain a warrant for access. This
alternative is time-consuming and should only be used as a last resort.
Try to visit the site as early as possible after you have received proper authority. Many sites will
have records available that can be used to establish liability. Look through filing cabinets,
archive-type boxes, desk drawers, ledgers, and any other record repository. Some sites,
especially bankrupt facilities, will be messy or even dangerous. EPA employees on site will need
to be prepared and should be briefed on all health and safety concerns. In practice, 104(e)
information request and site access letters will be issued more or less simultaneously with
identifying and reviewing the types of records discussed in Chapter 3.
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REFERENCES
Information Requests - 104(e) Question Categories Web page
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/superfund-information-request-letters
Transmittal of Guidance on Issuing CERCLA Section 104(e)(2) Information Requests to Federal
Agencies at Privately-owned Superfund Sites
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-issuing-superfund-104e2-information-requests-
federal-agencies-privately-owned
Transmittal of Sample Documents for More Effective Communication in CERCLA Section
104(e)(2) Information Requests
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-sample-documents-effective-communication-under-
cercla-section-104e
Transmittal of Model Consent Decree for CERCLA Section 104(e) Information Request
Enforcement Actions
http://www2.epa. gov/enforcement/model-cercla-section-104e-informati on -request-enforcement-
actions-consent-decree
Transmittal of Guidance on Use and Enforcement of CERCLA Information Requests and
Administrative Subpoenas
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-use-and-enforcement-cercla-information-requests-
and-administrative-subpoenas
PRP Search Manual, Section 3.1.5 ("Special Planning Considerations")
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Releasing Information to Potentially Responsible Parties at CERCLA Sites
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-releasing-information-prps-cercla-sites
Releasing Identities of PRPs in Response to FOIA Requests
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-releasing-prp-identities-foia-responses
EPA Regulations Governing Business Confidentiality Claims (40 C.F.R. § 2.201-2.215)
http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx 01/40cfr2 01.html
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Chapter 5 - Performing Title Searches
OVERVIEW
A title search is a review of public records for information about past and current
ownership of real property. The title search is a key component of any site history and,
except in exceptional cases, is always part of the PRP search process. For PRP search
purposes, the objectives of a title search include:
• identifying former and current owners and operators;
• identifying owners and operators at the time of each disposal;
• identifying potential interviewees;
• providing an accurate legal description of affected property; and
• identifying current property encumbrances, including easements, covenants, and
restrictions.
A title search should cover the period during which contamination is suspected to have occurred
down to the present. Title searches should be carefully tailored to each site's specific needs,
however, as they can be very expensive, especially if a site is comprised of many parcels or if the
title history is long and complicated.
Some county governments have all title information available on line, making it possible to
complete a title search on your computer. Others will have incomplete or no title search
information on line and the title search will have to be conducted on site at the county
courthouse. If you plan to travel to the courthouse to conduct a title search, determine the
location and hours of operation of the tax assessor's office and deed room. It is also important to
confirm the methods of payment that are accepted, how much copies will cost, and any specials
rules for making copies. Most the time this information can be found either on line or by
contacting the county by phone. Copies typically cost anywhere from 25 cents to $5 a page.
Certified copies typically cost more than regular copies.
TYPES OF TITLE SEARCH DOCUMENTS
Title documents of which you may need to obtain copies include the following:
• Warranty Deeds
Quitclaim Deeds
• Tax Deeds/Sheriff Deeds
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Mortgages/Deeds of Trust
Leases
Property Plats
Trustee's, Administrator's, and Executor's Deeds
Patents
Deeds of Reconveyance
Financing Statements
Judgments and Lis Pendens
Real Estate Contracts
Agreements
the property.
Mineral Leases
The most important
provision of any deed is
the legal description of
Oil and Gas Leases
Plat Maps of Subdivisions
Easements
Mining Claims
The most common types of title document you will come across are warranty deeds and
quitclaim deeds. In a warranty deed, the seller warrants or guarantees that he has a specific
interest in the property to convey. In a quitclaim deed, he conveys whatever
interest he has but does not warrant or guarantee that he has a specific interest or
that he is the only person with an interest in the property. The most important
provision of either type of deed is the legal description of the property being
conveyed. Property may be described by:
Metes and bounds;
Reference to a certain lot or lots in a recorded plat;
Fractions of sections (Public Land Survey System or PLSS);
Parcel number;
Deed reference; or
Any combination of the above.
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Below is a legal description in metes and bounds.
PARCEL 2
r °f lMd m Lot 3?> ASSESS0^'S SUBDIVISION OF THE G ALVAREZ
GRANT. as recorded in Map Book 3. page 137 of the Public Records of ^»
County. Honda, described as follows: Commence at the Southwest corner of said
Lot 37, thence run East along the South line of said Lot 37 North 74° East a
d,^ of 2931.07 feet, thence continue North 74° East a distance of 167.3 feet
t0r thc West "g^t-of-way line of Mango Drive, thence run along said West right- /A *
of-way line north 22° 06' West a distance of 239.5 feet for the Point of beginning,
thence commie along said right-of-way line a distance of 50 feet, thence ran
south 67° 37 40" West • distance of 166.3 feet, thence South 22° 061 East a
point of beginning.
The following legal description is in fractions of sections using the Public Land Survey System.
•.'•'• :• • -
payable annually in advance, the following described land,
situated in ^••Hfe County, Mississippi, to-wit:
The SE^ of the SE^ of the SEi^ of Section 16 , Township
7 South Range 11 West, except that part of said pro-
perty described as follows:
Commencing at the NW
corner of SE£ of SEfc of SE£» pf Section 16 Tovmship
7 SoiLth Range ll:-V/est ,. ••^^•••fCouniy r Mississippi,
due J^ast a distance of 167.25* to WjjTst back: edge of
Three Rivers Road/ side ditch; -thence South along
jjack edge of road side ditch ^intersection with
north R/W line of G. & S. I. K.K. Spur, thence on
north G. & S. I. R.R. R/W a distance of 179.0V to
intersection W/east 1/8 section line, thence on
east 1/8 section llnp due north a distance of 339«33*
to point of commencing,
Approximately 1.348 Acres,
-36-
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Public Land Survey System
Range: 2E
i
3.MO'
i
MO
1
«
i
r
!
5-
i
rita
i
6
7
18
19
30
5
8
17
20
29
3l| 32
4 3
9 10
16 15
21 22
28 27
33 34
2
11
14
23
26
35
1
12
13
24
25
36
Township: IN
Section 1ST IN R2E
Quarter 1 Quarter 2
•
I5-T1N-R2EME
Quaiter3
D
i i
IJ30'
J.MO
1 '
I
•
15-T1N-R2KNWNE
(RcadasNWoftheNE)
Quarter 4
1 ft.
. | :
T1N-R2ESENWNE 15-TIN-R2E SWSENW Nfi
It is important that you read and understand the legal description to make sure that the entire
property you are researching is changing hands in the described transaction as property is often
split up and sold separately or combined with other property during a sale.
-37-
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NEIGHBORING PROPERTIES
Additional title searches may be necessary if contamination has been found
migrating off site. A title search also may be conducted for parcels adjacent to the
site if, for example, EPA will need to obtain access from owners or ultimately
implement institutional controls on properties which are adjacent to the site. In
addition, a title search of adjacent parcels may disclose names of people familiar
with past or present site activities who can be contacted and interviewed. It also may provide
information about other activities in the area that may have contributed to contamination at the
site.
How TO CONDUCT A TITLE SEARCH
The following outlines a step-by-step guide to complete an in-person title search at a county
courthouse complex. These steps can also provide a useful guide for conducting on-line title
searches.
1. The first step on site should be to visit the Tax Assessor's office (other possible office
names include Property Appraiser, Real Property, and Appraiser). Using the owner name
or street address, obtain a copy of the current deed reference.
2. While at the Tax Assessor's office, obtain copies of a tax map and property card. A
property card will have all the information you will need to perform a title search. It will
include:
a. Parcel number;
b. Owner name;
c. Mailing address;
d. Property location or address;
e. Acreage;
f. Evaluation;
g. Current deed reference - Book/Page/Date;
h. Previous deed references - Book/Page/Date;
i. Sales history;
j. Sales prices; and
k. Legal description - brief excerpt from deed, e.g., "5-acre tract."
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3. The next step will be to visit the deed room (also known as Register of Deeds, Chancery).
Using the deed reference you have obtained, locate the property in the deed books. A
deed book will be separately indexed by grantor and grantee and should be organized
either chronologically or alphabetically.
4. Once you have located your property, first search forward to the present to see if the
property has recently been sold and the tax assessor's records are out of date. Then search
backward to record the history of the property. Typically you should search back in time
to the first industrial use of a property or the date a developer acquired property from
individuals.
5. Make copies of all the deeds of interest. Make sure the book number is on the deed you
copy. If not, write the deed number in the corner.
PRP VIABILITY
One aspect of a PRP search is determining if the responsible parties have the financial means to
pay for the site cleanup. One way to determine this is by looking at the PRPs' assets and
liabilities. Determining what is an asset and what is a liability will be discussed in more detail in
upcoming chapters and in more advanced training. For our purposes here, an asset would be
other real property owned by the PRP in addition to the property whose title you are currently
searching. This information can be obtained from the Tax Assessor's office. A liability would be
an "encumbrance" on the property, including a mortgage or a lien. This information will be
found in the indices kept in the deed room. If a mortgage or lien has been satisfied, this will also
be noted. Include in the title search report any outstanding lien or mortgage on a property.
TITLE SEARCH REPORT
Title search activities should be summarized in a title search report. The title search report should
include the current owners, previous owners, dates, site description, and location of the property.
The title search report can be organized in many different ways, as long as it conveys the needed
information. Examples appear on the following pages.
-39-
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Title Search Report
AmeriTitle
USEPA
1200 6th Avenue, Suite 900 ORC-15S
Seattle, WA 38101
Attn: Qrechen F. Schmidt
STATUS OF RECORD TITLE REPORT FOR:
140 Queen Ave SW
Albany, OR 97322
Policy or Policies to be issued;
320 Church Street ME
P.O. Box 652
Salem, OR 97308-0652
503-581-1431 FAX 364-8716
March 13, 2014
Title Number : 099184L,
Title Officer : MICHELE M.
Your Reference: --
$200.00
$100.00
$55,410.66, plus interest
HS-03W-07CD 1105 Al
914614
0801
Improvement Only
$166,398.65, plus interest
11S-03W-07CD 1105 Al
914614
0801
Improvement Only
Property taxes for the year 2011-2012 delinquent.
Original amount $172,680.14, plus interest
Map & Tax Lot No. 11S-03W-O7CD 1105 Al
Account No. : 914614
Code : 0801
Affects : improvement Only
STATUS OF RECORD TITLE REPORT
LIMITED CHAIN OF TITLE REPORT
We have searched the status of record title as to the following described property:
See Exhibit "A"
and dated as of March 11, 2014 at 8:00 A.M.
We find the last deed of record rune to:
Pacific Cast Technologies, Inc., a Nevada corporation
Said property io subject to the following on record matters:
1. Property taxes for the year 2009-2010 delinquent
Original amount
Map 5t Tax Lot No.
Account No.
Code
Affects
2. Property taxes for the year 2010-2011 delinquent.
Original amount
Map & Tax Lot No.
Account No,
Code
Affects
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Chain of Title
Order Ho. 099134L
Page 4
MOTE: Property taxes for the year 2013-2014, PAID IN FULL
Amount : $7,031.23
Map and Tax Lot No.: 11S-03W-07CD 1105 A2
Account No. : 91B846
Code : 0801
Affects : Real Property/Improvement Only
CHAIN OF TITLE
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor-
Grantee
Recorded
Document
Grantor
Grantee
Recorded
Bargain and Sale Dead
Hopton Technologies, Inc. now known as Molecular Technologies and Trade
Hopton Technologies Int LLC
MF Vol: 109? Page: 587
March 3D, 2000
MF Vol: 1160 Page: 128
MF Vol: 1214 Page: 1214
MF Vol: 1262 Page: 930
MF Vols 1596 Page: 896
Special Warranty Deed
Absorbent Technologies, Inc.
Farouk H, Al-Hadi and David L, Ellis and Pamela L. Ellis
July 26, 2006 2005-018192
Warranty Deed
Farouk H. Al-Hadi and David L. Ellis and Pamela L. Ellia
Pacific Cast Technologies, Inc.
February 18, 2014 2014-001760
Warranty Deed
Hopton Technologies Int LLC
EKA chemicals, Inc.
March 7, 2001
Warranty Deed
Wyman-Gordon Titanium Castings, LLC
Pacific Cast Technologies, inc.
September 7, 2001
Warranty Deed
EKA Chemicals, Inc.
SKA Chemicals, Inc.
February 8, 2002
Special Warranty Deed
EKA Chemicals, Inc.
Capital Acquisitions LLC
June 30, 2004
Warranty Deed
Capital Acquisitions, LLC
Absorbent Technologies, inc.
July 26, 2006
-41-
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Chain of Title in PRP Report
Date Grantor
3/30/2000 Hopton Technologies Inc (n/k/a Molecular
Technologies & Trade Inc.)
Grantee Documents
Hopton TechnologiesIntLLC 1097/587
3/7/2001 Hopton Technologies Int LLC
9/7/2001 Wyman-Gordon Titanium Castings LLC
2/7/2002 EKA Chemicals Inc.
6/28/2004 EKA Chemicals Inc.
7/26/2006 Capital Ac quisitions LLC
7/26/2006 Absorbent Technologies Inc.
EKA Chemicals Inc.
1160/128
Pacific Cast Technologies Inc. 1214/246 (ATI property listed
EKA Chemicals Inc.
Capital Acquisitions LLC
Absorbent Technologies Inc.
Farouk H. AI-Hadi, an
undivided % interest & David
L. Ellis and Pamela L. Ellis,
husband and wife, an
undivided % interest
as exemption in property
description)
1262/930
1596/896
2006-18191
2006-18192
2/18/2014 Farouk H. AI-Hadi, an undivided Vi interest &
David L. Ellis and Pamela L. Ellis, husband
and wife, an undivided Yi interest, all as
tenants in common
Pacific Cast Technologies,
Inc.
Warranty Deed-Statutory
Form
2014-01760(a portion paid to
a facilitator pursuant to an IRC
1031 Tax Deferred Exchange)
-42-
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CIS Map
Property; Owners hip Review
Oklahoma Refining Company
Cyril, Oklahoma
-43-
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Section 3.5 (Perform Title Search)
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources (PRPIIS)
See Appendix C.
USLegal
http://www.uslegal.com
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Chapter 6 - Conducting Interviews
Interviews complement the collection of relevant site records and aid in the development of
site-specific information that may not be recorded in government and potentially responsible
party (PRP) documents. Interviews are generally performed to identify additional PRPs or
gather evidence for liability determinations. If site documents do not exist, interviews may be the
only method available to obtain the information needed to complete the search. If site documents
do exist, interviews may help clarify the content of the documents or identify additional leads.
MYTHS ABOUT INTERVIEWS
Good interviewers are
made, not born.
There are a number of myths that people have about how to conduct
interviews. The goal of this chapter is to explain what interviews are and
what they are not. The chapter will also provide helpful tips for
conducting interviews. The most common interview myths are the
following.
• High technology solves most cases.
• There is lots of training on how to conduct interviews.
• Interviewing can be learned solely from experience.
• Good interviewers are born, not made.
• Interviewing is just questions and answers.
Investigators, not scientists, solve most cases. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) testing and other hi-
tech investigative tools cannot replace a good interview. Training for conducting interviews is
inadequate in most organizations, including EPA. Most organizations assume that you can learn
interviewing skills through experience. This is also a myth; although experience is important,
learning how to conduct effective interviews requires real training and practice. Everyone hired
by EPA has enough skill to be a good and effective interviewer. Interviews are also never just
"Qs and As." A good interview requires an emotional connection with the interviewee.
INTERVIEW CONSIDERATIONS
There are other factors to consider before deciding to conduct interviews. One of the most
important is the time required to plan, coordinate, and conduct interviews. Investigators typically
spend two to three times more time preparing for an interview than conducting the actual
interview. A considerable amount of time is also devoted to writing up the results of an
interview. The PRP search team needs to evaluate beforehand if an interview is likely to result in
valuable information that would make the time spent worthwhile. Investigators should also
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consider the location and availability of interviewees. Arranging travel time can be difficult and
you need to consider when a subject will be available for an interview.
One factor to consider is that EPA interviews normally have less evidentiary
value than a signed 104(e) information request letter. A signed 104(e)
information response is more likely to be admissible in court while interviews are
sometimes not allowed into evidence. 104(e) letters have to be certified by the
PRP as being complete and notarized. Also, there are penalties of up to $37,500
per day for failure to fully and truthfully respond to a 104(e) request.
Interviews do have some advantages over 104(e) information requests. Interviews allow for
immediate follow-up questions without having to send an additional 104(e) letter, and people
often give broader and higher quality answers in an interview. There are also some witnesses
who have a hard time with 104(e) letters because of ill health, age, or illiteracy.
Interview topics will vary from site to site and depend on the interviewee. The interviewer
should seek to gather information on:
• Existing records;
• Location of additional records;
Site activities that led to contamination;
• Nature and extent of contamination;
• Location of site contamination; and
• Other potential interviewees.
Interviewees are typically persons who may be able to identify or locate PRP and
site documents. After a thorough review of collected site information, the PRP
search team should develop a list of potential interviewees by name and address.
Potential interviewees include:
• Site operators (plant managers, plant workers, contractors, truck drivers);
• On-site visitors (vendors, inspectors, recyclers, customers);
Government officials (courts, law enforcement agencies, the SEC, state environmental
agencies); and
• Local witnesses.
The universe of interviewees is always case-specific. The interviewee selection should be based
on whether he or she is necessary to strengthen your case for cost recovery, negotiation, or
litigation.
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There are 10 important qualities of a good interviewer.
• Professional behavior (acting within your scope of authority)
• Attitude (open-minded)
• Flexibility
Curiosity
• Imagination
• Intuition
• Neutrality
• Active listening
• Rapport
• Patience
EIGHT STEPS
All good interviews have a definite structure. The following is from John Hess's
book Interviewing Interrogation for Law Enforcement.
Step 1 - Preparation
Preparing for an interview means knowing all the case facts and what questions you plan to ask
the interviewee. It also means scheduling the interview during the appropriate time during an
investigation. An interview should not occur so early that many pertinent facts of the case have
yet to be uncovered or so late in the investigation that it is unlikely to provide new information.
It is also important to consider the location of an interview; government buildings may be
appropriate for some interviews, but not all.
Step 2 - Introduction
It is important always to introduce yourself with your name, authority/position, and the purpose
of the interview. Be especially careful about the purpose, since you never get a second chance to
make a first impression
Step 3 - Establish Rapport
Establishing rapport with the interviewee will lead to a more cooperative interview. This can be
accomplished through the use of flattery, mirroring the interviewee's mannerisms, and
withholding judgment. It is also important that you are detached from the subject and do not
criticize what the interviewee has to say.
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Step 4 - Question Formulation and Techniques
An interview is successful when the interviewee provides the truth. Well-crafted
questions can lead the interviewee to tell the truth. Open-ended questions work
best and provide the interviewee with an opportunity to tell his or her story. Closed
questions, i.e., yes-or-no questions, work better with reluctant interviewees.
Simple questions often encourage compliance more than complicated questions.
Complex and specific questions should only be asked after evaluating the interviewee's initial
responses. It is also important never to ignore an unanswered question and move on to another
topic. Instead ask the question again varying the wording. Many investigators have a hard time
asking tough questions. Tough questions would include, "What is in that unlabeled barrel?"
"Where are the missing records?" "Who else knows about the release?" Sometimes these kinds
of questions need to be asked, even if they make the interviewee uncomfortable.
Step 5 -Verification
One of the worst things that can happen to an investigator is having a witness recant or change
his or her story later, especially in front of the prosecutor, attorney, or, worst of all, in court. This
can happen either because interviewers often hear what they want or expect or because witnesses
often think one thing and say another. This can be avoided by paraphrasing the witness's
testimony and repeating it to him or her for confirmation and possible elaboration. Signed
statements are also a good way to confirm a witness's testimony, especially if they are written by
the witness. Written statements and recordings are always completely voluntary and should
never be elicited with promises or threats. An investigator needs to be prepared to provide the
witness with copies of statements or recordings.
Step 6 - All-inclusive Questions
It is important to ask an all-inclusive question at the end of the interview, such as, "Now that I
have gone over the facts, can you think of anything else that might be of value, anything I forgot
to ask." This type of question often elicits information that you did know was pertinent or
available.
Step 7 - Departure
Leaving an interview can be as important as the introduction. The rapport that was
established during the interview should be sustained afterward. Sometimes the best
information obtained is after the official interview is completed.
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Step 8 - Review
It is important to ask yourself what you would do differently if the interview were to take place
again. Try not to think in terms of an overall rating, but look at the individual parts. Did I
develop rapport? Did I ask open-ended questions? Did I listen actively? An interviewer will only
improve if he or she takes the time to evaluate what could have been done better.
TELEPHONE INTERVIEWING TECHNIQUES
Investigators often find it necessary to conduct interviews over the telephone
due to geography, time constraints, or other scheduling factors. Telephone
interviews have some advantages over face-to-face interviews, and some
disadvantages. You should evaluate them before deciding that a telephone interview is advisable,
and be aware of them while conducting the interview.
Advantages and Disadvantages
There are three main advantages to telephone interviews:
1. They may be cost- and time-effective. This is likely to be the case when the subject is
located in a distant geographical location or his availability is limited due to travel or other
conflicting activities.
2. The subject's responses will not be prepared in advance. This may result in more
spontaneous responses that suggest new lines of inquiry to the interviewer or reveal
inconsistencies in the information provided by the subject.
3. The subject may be willing to answer questions that he or she would not be willing to
answer in a face-to-face interview. Certain potentially embarrassing topics may be easier
for the interviewee to talk about in the relatively anonymous context of a telephone
interview.
There are some disadvantages too. The interviewer has less control over the subject and the
interview environment. This may hamper his efforts to keep the interview "on track" due either
to distractions in the environment or simply the ease with which the interviewee can terminate
the interview. Closely related to this lack of control is the interviewer's inability to evaluate the
subject's non-verbal behavior. As we have seen, this is one of the interviewer's most important
skills, and not being able to use it may prevent him from accurately assessing how the interview
is going and adjusting his interview strategy accordingly.
Interrogating over the Telephone
The most important rule is not to adopt an accusatory style of interrogation. There are several
reasons for this. First, the likelihood of obtaining a confession in an uncontrolled environment is
remote. We have seen how control of the environment, emphasizing the formality of the process
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and including the personal presence and authority of the interviewer, can help elicit a confession.
These persuasive elements are absent in a telephone interview. Moreover, once the subject has
given a telephone interview, he or she is unlikely to agree to a face-to-face interview. He or she
may feel they have "done their bit" or be put on their guard by the line of questioning. And even
if he or she does confess, there is no witness to the confession, leaving the subject free to deny
the confession later.
Environmental Considerations
It is essential that a telephone interviewee be somewhere private. This will reduce the incidence
of distractions and interruptions, and also remove people who may have an inhibiting effect on
the interviewee. If the subject's environment does not sound private to you, offer to call back at
another time or place.
Timing Considerations
Interviewees who have limited time to talk will usually give unsatisfactory
interviews. They will be preoccupied, unable to focus on the questions fully, and
provide hurried and fragmentary responses. To help prevent these outcomes, do
not contact interviewees at mealtimes or just before leaving for or from work. To maximize the
likelihood of successful interviews, try to call when they are most likely to be alone, e.g., when
the kids are at school or the spouse is at work.
Six-Step Interview Structure
1. INTRODUCTION. The goal is to establish rapport with the interviewee. Introduce yourself,
identify the purpose of the interview, and explain the question-and-answer format you plan
to follow
2. INITIAL OPEN QUESTION. This step is designed to get the subject used to talking to you as
well as to elicit specific information. It also casts the subject in the role of expert on the
topics of interest to you. The initial open question may take forms such as, "Can you tell
me everything that happened ..." or "Can you explain exactly how ..." Naturally, the
initial open question may generate further, more detailed questions.
3. DRAWING OUT A COMPLETE RESPONSE. Once the interviewee is talking, you want him to
continue. You can encourage this by assuring him that you find his responses pertinent and
valuable, and that you are eager to hear more. Expressions such as "OK," "I see,"
"Alright," and "Please continue" are usually sufficient to convey your satisfaction with his
answers.
4. CLARIFYING QUESTIONS. It will be necessary to ask questions of this kind to fill in gaps in
the subject's responses or to provide necessary context for understanding them. They are
also a means of encouraging him to keep him talking, and may serve to jog his memory
about details he or she may have overlooked or not considered important. Clarifying
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questions may take forms such as, "Can you tell me about. . . ," "Can you clarify exactly
what you meant by ... ," or "Could you give me an example of. . ."
5. ASKING DIRECT QUESTIONS. An interviewer asks this type of question to get at specific
pieces of information that are crucial to the investigation. You may go into the interview
with these questions clearly in mind, but some may occur to you as you learn more from
the interviewee. Either way, they are best asked once rapport has been established, the
subject has gotten accustomed to talking with you, and you have conveyed the idea that the
interview is proceeding satisfactorily. Then the subject is likely to be most receptive to
questions such as, "Did you ...?," "Do you know who ...?," "and
"Is it possible that. . . ?"
6. SUMMARY STATEMENT. A summary statement is useful for reinforcing the interviewee's
commitment to any assertions he or she has made. Affirming his assertions may prepare
him for a face-to-face interview, and working with you to draft and agree on a summary
statement will keep the line of communication between you open for future conversations.
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Section 3.4 ("Conduct Interviews")
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Harris, Sam. Lying. Kindle Single Edition (2010)
Hess, John E. Interviewing and Interrogation for Law Enforcement, Second Edition. Matthew
Bender & Company (2010)
Holmes, Warren D. Criminal Interrogation: A Modern Format for Interrogating Criminal
Suspects Based on the Intellectual Approach. Charles C. Thomas Publisher (2002)
Kelly, Patrick J. "Interview and Persuasion Techniques", Presentation at 7th National Training
Conference on PRP Search Enhancement (June 2010).
Lieberman, David J. "Never Be Lied to Again". DJL Media (2010)
Navarro, Joe. What Every Body is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Speed-Reading People.
HarperCollins e-books (August 2007)
Rudacille, Wendell C. Identifying Lies in Disguise. Kendall Hunt Publishing Co. (1994)
Walters, Stan B. Principles of Kinesics Interview and Interrogation. CRC Press, Inc. (1996)
Yeschke, Charles L. The Art of Investigative Interviewing, Second Edition. Butterworth
Heinemann (2003)
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Chapter 7 - Business Entities as PRPs
As we have already seen, Section 107(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) identifies four classes of person who are
potentially liable to perform or pay for site cleanup. The term "person" is in turn defined
by Section 101(21) to include "an individual, firm, corporation, association, partnership,
consortium, joint venture, commercial entity, United States Government, state, municipality,
commission, political subdivision of a state, or any interstate body." Obviously, business entities
account for a substantial proportion of the "persons" who may find themselves liable under
Section 107(a).
The terms used to describe business entities vary by jurisdiction, but the following are in general
use and cover the majority of such entities:
Sole proprietorships,
• Partnerships,
• Corporations,
• Limited liability companies, and
• Joint ventures.
Each of these is characterized by significant differences in ownership and management.
SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP
• A business owned and operated by an individual.
• All assets of the business are owned by the individual.
• The individual owner/operator is liable for all debts and obligations of the L
business.
PARTNERSHIP
• Associations of two or more persons to carry on a business for profit as co-owners.
• Each "general" partner is personally liable for all debts and obligations of
the partnership.
• Each "limited" partner's liability is limited to the amount of his investment.
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JOINT VENTURE
• A partnership that is usually limited in purpose and duration.
• Partners in a joint venture are usually other business entities, often corporations.
CORPORATION
• A corporation is a legal entity that is an "artificial person" for legal purposes.
• A corporation is created under state law and is separate from the shareholders
who own it.
• A "subsidiary" is a corporation owned in whole or in part by another
corporation.
Corporations may be public or private. A public corporation is usually authorized to sell
shares to the public, is traded on a public stock exchange, and is subject to extensive
statutory reporting requirements on its activities and finances.
• Management functions are divided among incorporators, directors, officers, and
shareholders.
LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (LLC)
• An entity that affords the owners liability protections similar to those available to
corporate shareholders without all the rights and duties of a corporation.
• Special-purpose entities such as professionals doing business as a company are often
organized as LLCs.
How ARE CORPORATIONS CREATED?
Corporations are creatures of state law. Every state has a corporations law that authorizes and
specifies the requirements for creating a corporation. Articles of incorporation, which act as a
sort of "constitution" for the company, are generally filed with the secretary of state or similar
state official.
debts.
Corporations may exist in perpetuity, and are generally authorized to do
Shareholders in a
corporation are not ,, . , ,. , ,, • , • , ,.
everything necessary to accomplish their business purposes, including
acquiring and holding real and personal property and borrowing and
lending money.
LIABILITY PROTECTIONS
One of the great advantages of the corporate form of business organization
is the liability protection it offers the owners. Shareholders in a
corporation are not personally liable for the corporation's debts. Each
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shareholder risks only the amount of his investment. Shareholders are therefore insulated from
the liabilities of the corporate enterprise.
EXCEPTIONS TO LIMITS ON CORPORATE LIABILITY
In order to prevent abuse of the corporate form, legislatures and courts have
created exceptions to the liability protections normally afforded to shareholders
and other corporate actors. Some of the most important of these exceptions are
discussed below.
• PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL. This is a legal theory used to ignore the corporate
"person" and hold shareholders individually liable. Courts have usually invoked this
theory when they find that the corporation has no existence separate from the individual
shareholder and is only his "alter ego". Evidence of being a mere "alter ego" includes
failure to comply with corporate formalities, commingling of corporate and individual
assets, undercapitalization of the corporation, and use of the corporation to commit illegal
or fraudulent acts.
• DIRECT LIABILITY. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Bestfoods, 524 U.S.
51 (1998) that a parent corporation may be directly liable under CERCLA if it managed,
directed, or conducted operations of a subsidiary related to pollution. The court stated
that in order to impose direct liability, this involvement must exceed corporate norms.
There is a presumption that an employee of both the parent and subsidiary is acting on
behalf of the subsidiary.
Courts have also applied the Bestfoods direct liability standard to corporate officers, directors,
employees, and shareholders. Any of these actors may be found directly, i.e., personally liable if
he (1) participated personally in the activity leading to the release of hazardous substances, or
(2) exercised direct control over environmental management of the facility, including waste
handling or disposal operations.
CORPORATE HISTORY
The history of any corporation begins with the time and place of incorporation.
Subsequent events may complicate the potentially responsible party (PRP) search
and raise questions as to the corporation's liability. In general, these are (1) name
changes, (2) mergers and consolidations, and (3) asset purchases.
• NAME CHANGES. Companies may operate under multiple names, especially when they are
divided into different divisions. They also may use trade names, "doing business as"
(dba) names, or even fictitious names. Regardless of how a name change comes about, it
has no bearing on liability. A corporation (or any other business entity) is the same for
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liability purposes regardless of what it is called. In other words, a company cannot avoid
liability simply by changing its name. On the other hand, name changes can make it
difficult to determine the identity of a PRP. Corporate and other business entities' name
changes can be traced in the files of the secretary of state and the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) and in trade or financial journals.
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another with the surviving corporation acquiring all the assets and liabilities of the one it
absorbs. In a consolidation, two or more corporations transfer all their assets and
liabilities to a new corporation. In either case, the surviving corporation inherits or
"succeeds to" all the liabilities of its merger partner or predecessors. Both mergers and
consolidations often result in name changes, but the same rule applies. In other words, a
company cannot avoid liability by merging with another one or transferring its assets to a
new one. Records and documentation of mergers and consolidations may be found in the
files of the secretary of state and the SEC and in trade or financial journals.
ASSET PURCHASES. A corporation generally does not assume liability merely by acquiring
assets from a PRP. There are, however, exceptions to this rule. One is for a fraudulent
transaction, e.g., an effort to disguise the vendor's liability. In other cases, there may be
an express or implicit assumption of liabilities on the part of the purchaser. Also, courts
may determine that an asset purchase amounts to a "de facto merger". In other words, a
transaction overtly structured as an asset purchaser renders the vendor an empty shell all
of whose actual business activities have been transferred to the purchaser. Documents
relating to such sales or transfers may be filed with the secretary of state; evidence of
them is also likely to be found in corporate records and minutes.
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Sections 1.2 ("General CERCLA Liability") and
Section 3.6 ("Corporate Liability")
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources (PRPIIS)
See Appendix C.
Information Requests - 104(e) Question Categories
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/superfund-information-request-letters
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Chapter 8 - Compiling PRP Data and
Managing Records
Every potentially responsible party (PRP) search is different and the data
collection process will be different too. There is, however, a "short list" of
documents that the PRP searcher tends to encounter regularly. The most
common types of documents are:
• Hazardous waste manifests
• Floating manifests
• Pick-up notices
• Invoices
• Material safety data sheets (MSDS)
• Business records
• Bank statements
Customer lists
The places where documents are located are often as varied as the documents
themselves. The most likely places to start looking include EPA and other federal
agency files, state files, and records kept by site owners and operators.
Agency files should contain information submitted by the
owners or operators in compliance with periodic reporting requirements
imposed by statute. EPA and secretary of state files may in turn disclose
inspection and compliance activity conducted by other federal, state, and
local agencies. Site records are likely to come in all shapes and sizes, and
all types of records should be investigated as they may include anything
from scribbled notes to technical descriptions of site operations and
detailed and systematic business records.
Site records come in
all shapes and sizes.
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COMPILING DATA
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Compiling data can be as big a challenge as gathering them. In every case, you
will need a system that compiles data so they can be accessed, tracked, and
manipulated for purposes of evaluating PRP liability and viability. Depending
on the scope of the search and complexity of the site, this purpose may be
served by something as simple as a spreadsheet or require a more elaborate
database or specialized contractor products and support. The following factors should be
considered and evaluated when developing a site-specific database:
• Data entry procedures
Types of summaries and reports needed
• Number and types of wastes to be tracked
• Who the database users will be
• Resource requirements for development and maintenance
Contractor support needs and availability
• Contract period of performance
• Expected term of use
• Hardware and software compatibility
• Ease of transition
A numbering system is essential for tracking data. Each PRP should be assigned a unique
identifier to prevent confusion if parties have similar names. The identifier format can be
flexible. An example would be (xxxx-xxxx), where the first four digits are the unique party
identifier and the last four are page numbers.
Volumetric or "waste-in" data are crucial for establishing PRP liability. A compilation of
volumetric data should include:
• Names and addresses of PRPs
• Types and volumes of hazardous substances contributed
• Dates of shipments
Transporter names
• Evidence types
• Other information to support assumptions
Once volumetric data are compiled, a volumetric ranking may be
established in which PRPs are ranked in descending order by the
volume of waste they contributed to the site, expressing each party's
An accurate volumetric
ranking facilitates
settlement negotiations.
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contribution as a percentage of the total volume of hazardous material at the site. An accurate
volumetric ranking facilitates settlement negotiations and enables EPA to identify de minimis
and de micromis parties.
Just as volumetric data are crucial for establishing PRP liability, financial data are crucial for
establishing PRP viability. A compilation of financial data should include the following:
• Names and addresses of companies
• Name changes, mergers, and acquisitions
• Nature and dates of important financial transactions
• Information bearing on ability to pay its share of cleanup costs
ORGANIZING RECORDS
A record is recorded information in any format that is (1) created in the course of business,
(2) received for action, or (3) needed to document EPA activities. More information may be
found at www.epa.gov/records/whatis. You should be familiar with both your Region's record-
keeping requirements and Superfund records management requirements, which are set out in
Subpart I of the National Contingency Plan (NCP).
For management purposes, documents should always be requested in electronic
©format as hard copies take up space. Ensure that confidential business
information (CBI) and personally identifiable information (PII) are identified and
protected. A database may be useful for managing and tracking this and other
document-specific information. Submit all documents to your regional Records
Center as soon as possible.
Organizing records pertaining to large sites presents unique challenges. The best method of
doing so may be identified by considering the following factors:
Types of information needed from the documents
• Volume of documents
• Regional file structure
• Capabilities of the organizer
• Ease of document retrieval
• Long-term tracking needs and capabilities
• Potential document security issues
• Unique site-specific needs
• Nature and number of potential users
Time required to organize documents
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REFERENCES
PRP Search Manual, Section 3.8 ("Compile Waste-In Information")
and Section 3.8.2 ("Waste-In Lists and Volumetric Rankings")
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Final Guidance on Preparing Waste-in Lists and Volumetric Rankings for Release to Potentially
Responsible Parties (PRPs) Under CERCLA ("Waste-in Guidance")
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-preparing-waste-lists-and-volumetric-rankings-
release-prps-waste-gui dance
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Chapter 9 - PRP Search
Documentation
BASELINE PRP SEARCH REPORT
There is no official definition of what constitutes a "baseline" potentially responsible party
(PRP) search or a "baseline" PRP search report, and not all EPA Regions use this term.
Nevertheless, at some point in the search you will have gathered enough information
about the site and the PRPs associated with it to support some preliminary liability
determinations. At this point, you will want to compile and organize this information to support
these determinations, whether or not you call the product a baseline PRP search report.
Regardless of what the document is called, it should consist of two major components, a site
history and a PRP synopsis.
SITE HISTORY
The site history relies on the information gathered during the course of all the activities described
in Sessions 1 through 8 of this course. The site history has two major purposes:
• To describe and relate information about the site property, owners and operators,
operations, and contaminants so as to support liability determinations; and
• To provide information to individuals performing technical field work on possible
locations of environmental contamination.
Just as there is no official definition of a "baseline" PRP search report, there is no
standard format for writing a site history, nor are there any requirements as to
sources that must be relied on for the information it contains. Every site is unique,
and the sources and format of every site history will reflect the peculiarities of the
site and the available sources of information about it. The history should include the following
elements, however, in one form or other:
• START DATE. The date when the PRP search began and why that date was selected.
• SITE CHRONOLOGY. The list and/or description of activities that have taken place at the
site in chronological order.
• OWNERSHIP HSTORY. The owners and operators of the site in the same order as the site
chronology.
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PRP SYNOPSIS
The PRP synopsis also is based on the information gathered in the activities covered in Sessions
1 through 8. The main elements of the synopsis are as follows:
• Name of the PRP
• Reason the party was identified as a PRP
• The PRP's potential defenses to or exemptions from liability
• Conclusions as to liability and recommendations for further action
• The type of release for which the PRP is believed responsible
• History of enforcement actions taken against the PRP at the site
• The PRP's financial viability
PRELIMINARY PRP SEARCH COMPLETION MEASURE
The "Preliminary PRP Search Completion" measure was developed in response to
an EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG) evaluation report that sought to
establish consistent milestones for and documentation of PRP searches. In
response to the report, EPA developed a "Preliminary Potentially Responsible
Party (PRP) Search Completion" guidance document in June 2011.1 This guidance
outlines the search activities that constitute completion of a "preliminary" PRP search and
describes the procedure for documenting them.
The elements of preliminary search completion and the documentation requirements for each are
set out below.
Site Location/
Legal
Description
Found on
technical
documents or
from OSC/RPM,
with the legal
description found
on the vesting
deed
Names of
Current and
Past Owners
Vesting deed
Description of
Site Operations
Leases or other
agreements for
activity on site
not by owner
Liability/Viability
Determination
Use information
obtained and
Section 107(a)to
determine if the
PRPs are liable,
Use tax documents
to determine
viability
Names of
Arrangers/Trans
porters (if
appropriate)
Site business
records and
permits
1 Transmittal of "Preliminary Responsible Party Search Completion" Measure Definition for Incorporation
into the Superfund Program Implementation Manual for FY2012. OECA Memorandum (June 23, 2011).
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Satisfaction of the preliminary search completion requirements is documented in Superfund
Enterprise Management System (SEMS) and the site file. Regions may follow the documentation
format set out in EPA's June 2011 "PRP Search Reference Summary" guidance document or
their own formats as long as they document the tasks completed and the results. The following
documents rely on information developed in the course of the preliminary PRP search:
• Removal Enforcement Attachment
• Regional NPL Enforcement Document
• Cost Recovery Decision Document2
• 10-Point Settlement Analysis
• Pre-Referral Notice
• Cost Recovery Referral for Removal
• Department of Justice (DOJ) Referral
• Special Notice Letters
• General Notice Letters
FOLLOW-UP SEARCHES s-^
There are several circumstances in which a follow-up search is necessary or ^
advisable:
• New evidence may come to light of additional PRPs and/or other sources of
contamination that require investigation.
• Sale of the site property.
• Inadequate response to a Section 104(e) information request.
• Prior to issuing a ROD or commencing a removal action, remedial investigation, or
remedial action.
There is no standard form of follow-up PRP search report. Search reports are updated as and if
necessary after follow-up activities are completed and before milestone cleanup activities
commence.
2 E.g., PRP Search Documentation Summary Requirements for Decision Documents to Not Pursue Cost
Recovery Where Unaddressed Past Costs Are Greater Than $200,000. OECA Memorandum (March 8, 2011).
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OTHER TASKS AND USES OF THE PRP SEARCH REPORT
ATP Determinations
Both the baseline and preliminary PRP searches should include information on the financial
viability of the PRP, i.e., his ability to pay for his share of the necessary removal and remedial
activities at the site. This information will enable the case team to evaluate ability-to-pay claims
brought under Section 122(g)(7) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act (CERCLA).
The information about site
operations and contaminants in the
site history part of the PRP Search
Report may enable the case team to
link PRPs with specific areas,
contamination, and media
at the site.
Waste Stream Analysis
The information about site operations and contaminants set out in
the site history part of the PRP Search Report may enable the
case team to link PRPs with specific areas, contamination, and
media at the site. This exercise should enable the team to arrive
at a more accurate and better documented estimate of the PRP's
share of response costs, thereby strengthening EPA's position in
settlement negotiations and supporting its liability determinations
if they are challenged in court.
Cost Recovery and Statute of Limitations
As we saw in Chapter 1, CERCLA enables EPA to recover its
response costs from responsible parties. An accurate and
thorough PRP search is indispensable for doing so as EPA relies
on the PRP search report to document all the liability factors that have to be demonstrated to
prove that an owner, operator, arranger, or transporter is responsible for site contamination.
Information in the PRP search report supports the three phases of the cost recovery process.
• DEMAND LETTERS. These are sent to responsible parties setting forth the Agency's
grounds for determining that the party is responsible for site contamination and the dollar
amount of its liability.
• COST DOCUMENTATION. EPA must document the work performed at a site and the direct
and indirect costs of performing it in order to show that the costs were "not inconsistent
with" the National Contingency Plan as required by CERCLA § 107(a)(4)(A).
• REFERRALS TO DOJ. When a cost recovery settlement cannot be reached with responsible
parties or where a proposed settlement concerns a site where total response costs exceed
$500,000, cost recovery must be referred to DOJ along with the Agency's supporting cost
documentation.
When there is no voluntary cost recovery settlement, DOJ sues the responsible parties in federal
court to recover EPA's response costs. DOJ will review the cost recovery referral "package" for
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sufficiency, but it is not able to fill "holes" in the PRP search itself. Failure to document work
performed, costs incurred, or liability determinations adequately will seriously jeopardize EPA's
ability to recover its costs.
Moreover, delays caused by efforts to repair defects in PRP search and cost documentation can
jeopardize EPA's claim by exceeding the limitation periods set forth in CERCLA § 113(g).
Subject to certain exceptions, CERCLA requires that:
• An action to recover removal costs must be commenced within three years
after completion of a removal action, and
• An action to recover remedial costs must be commenced within six years
after initiation of physical, on-site construction of the remedy.
When there is both a removal and a remedial action at a site, there can be one "rolling" limitation
period. If the remedial investigation begins within three years after completion of the removal
action, the removal costs can be recovered as part of the remedial investigation cost recovery
action. Furthermore, if the remedial design begins within three years of the record of decision
(ROD) being signed, the removal and the remedial investigation costs can be recovered with the
remedial design cost recovery. Finally, if the remedial action begins three years from the
remedial design, all costs in effect roll into the remedial action cost recovery. These statutory
periods are illustrated on the following page.
Regardless of what limitation period applies at a particular site, however, there may not be time
to plug all the holes in defective liability and cost documentation. This might defeat EPA's cost
recovery altogether by expiration of the limitation period, or jeopardize it by forcing DOJ to
litigate inadequately supported claims. In any case, it is best to document all search activities as
soon as possible to ensure the case being developed is complete and supports any claims EPA
and DOJ decide to pursue.
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COST RECOVERY STATUTORY PERIODS
CONVENTIONAL
REMOVAL
REMOVAL WITH
SIGNED WAIVER
RI/FS
3 years
Date of last completed removal action,
when more than one such action is
conducted
SOL deadline
it
6 years after determination to grant exemption to the statutory limits
3 years
Date of signature of ROD
4.
SOL deadline
SOL deadline
RD
3 years
Date of completion of design
kSOL deadline
RA
6 years
Date physical on-site construction starts
SOL
deadline
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REFERENCES
Transmittal of Preliminary Potentially Responsible Party Search Completion
Measure Definition for Incorporation into the Superfund Program
Implementation Manual for FY2012 (6/23/2011)
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-preliminary-prp-search-completion-measure-
defmition-and-superfund-program
PRP Search Documentation Summary Requirements for Decision Documents to Not Pursue Cost
Recovery Where Unaddressed Past Costs are Greater Than $200,000 (3/8/2011)
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-documenting-prp-search-decision-documents-and-
unaddressed-cost-recoveries
PRP Search Manual, Chapters 3 and 4
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/report-prp-search-manual-2009-edition-2011-addendum
Statute of Limitations Overview (09/2005) (EPA Intranet Only)
http://intranet.epa.gov/oeca/osre/doc/sol-overview.pdf
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lixA
Acronyms and Abbreviations
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Acronyms and Abbreviations
AAI All appropriate inquiries
AR Administrative record
ASAOC Administrative settlement agreement and order on consent
ATP Ability to pay
ATSDR Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
BFPP Bona fide prospective purchaser
CBI Confidential business information
CD Consent decree
CERCLA Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
of 1980
CLEAR Consolidated Lead Evaluation and Reporting
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
CWA Clean Water Act
dba
DNA
DOJ
E.G.
EPA
FOIA
FS
GIS
GNL
doing business as
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Department of Justice
Executive Order
Environmental Protection Agency
Freedom of Information Act
Feasibility study
Geographic information system
General notice letter
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LLC
MSDS
MSW
NCP
NPL
Limited liability company
Material safety data sheet
Municipal solid waste
National Contingency Plan
National Priorities List
OECA Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
OIG Office of Inspector General
OMB Office of Management and Budget
OSC On-scene coordinator
OU Operable unit
PA Preliminary assessment
PACER Public Access to Court Electronic Records
PA/SI Preliminary assessment/site investigation
PCBs Fob/chlorinated biphenyls
PDF Portable document format
PII Personally identifiable information
P.L. Public Law
PLSS Public Land Survey System
PRP Potentially responsible party
PRPIIS Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources
RA Remedial action
RCRA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
RD Remedial design
RD/RA Remedial design/remedial action
RI Remedial investigation
RI/FS Remedial investigation/feasibility study
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ROD Record of decision
RPM Remedial project manager
SARA Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986
SEC Securities and Exchange Commission
SEMS Superfund Enterprise Management System
SI Site investigation
SNL Special notice letter
SOL Statute of Limitations
SREA Superfund Recycling Equity Act of 1999
TSCA Toxic Substances Control Act
UAO Unilateral administrative order
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Appendix B
Glossary
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Glossary
Administrative
Settlement and
Administrative
Order on Consent
(ASAOC):
A legal agreement between EPA and an individual, business, or other entity
in which the other entity agrees to take an action, refrain from an activity, or
pay certain costs. It describes the actions to be taken, may be subject to a
public comment period, applies to civil actions, and can be enforced in court.
AOCs are most commonly used for removal actions and remedial
investigation/feasibility studies (RI/FSs), but may be used for de minimis and
cost recovery settlements.
Administrative
Record (AR):
The body of documents that "forms the basis" for the selection of a particular
response at a site. For example, the AR for remedy selection includes all
documents that were "considered or relied upon" to select the response
action. An AR must be available at or near every site to permit interested
individuals to review the documents and to allow meaningful public
participation in the remedy selection process. ARs are increasingly being
made available electronically. This requirement does not apply to other
ARs, such as those for deletion from the National Priorities List (NPL).
Administrator's/
Executor's/
Trustee's Deed:
A deed that conveys land executed by the individual managing a trust.
Arranger:
Any person who by contract, agreement, or otherwise arranged for disposal
or treatment, or arranged with a transporter for disposal or treatment, of
hazardous substances owned or possessed by the person or by any other
party or entity, at any facility or incineration vessel owned or operated by
another party or entity and containing such hazardous substances. Arrangers
are sometimes referred to as generators
Brownfields:
In general, the term refers to real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or
reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of
a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. The term does not include:
• a facility that is the subject of a planned or ongoing removal action
under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act (CERCLA);
• a facility that is listed or proposed for listing on the National
Priorities List (NPL);
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• a facility that is the subject of a unilateral administrative order
(UAO), a court order, an order of consent or judicial consent decree
that has been issued to or entered into by the parties under CERCLA,
the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA, commonly referred to as the
Clean Water Act (CWA)), the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA),
or the Safe Drinking Water Act (SOWA);
• a facility that is subject to corrective action under RCRA § 3004(u) or
3008(h), and to which a corrective action permit or order has been
issued or modified to require the implementation of corrective
measures;
• a facility that is a land disposal unit with respect to which a closure
notification under Subtitle C of RCRA has been submitted, and
closure requirements have been specified in a closure plan or permit;
• a facility that is subject to the jurisdiction, custody, or control of a
department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States for an
Indian tribe;
• a portion of a facility at which there has been a release of
poly chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and that is subject to remediation
under TSCA; or
• a portion of a facility for which assistance for response activity has
been obtained under Subtitle I of RCRA from the Leaking
Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund established under section
9508 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
Cleanup Activities:
Actions taken to deal with a release or threatened release of a hazardous
substance that could affect humans or the environment. The term "cleanup"
is sometimes used interchangeably with the terms remedial action, removal
action, response, or corrective action.
Consent Decree
(CD):
A legal document, approved by a judge, that formalizes an agreement
reached between EPA and one or more potentially responsible parties (PRPs)
outlining the terms under which that PRP(s) will conduct all or part of a
response action, pay past costs, cease or correct actions or processes that are
polluting the environment, or comply with regulations where failure to
comply caused EPA to initiate regulatory enforcement actions. The CD
describes the actions PRP(s) will take, is subject to a public comment period
prior to its approval by a judge, and is enforceable as a final judgment by a
court.
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Contractual
Relationship:
According to CERCLA § 101(35), "The term 'contractual relationship', for
the purpose of section 107(b)(3), includes, but is not limited to, land
contracts, deeds, or other instruments transferring title or possession, unless
the real property on which the facility concerned is located was acquired by
the defendant after the disposal or placement of the hazardous substance on,
in, or at the facility, and one or more of the circumstances described in
clause (i), (ii), or (iii) is also established by the defendant by a preponderance
of the evidence:
(i) At the time the defendant acquired the facility the defendant
did not know and had no reason to know that any hazardous
substance which is the subject of the release or threatened
release was disposed of on, in, or at the facility.
(ii) The defendant is a government entity which acquired the
facility by escheat, or through any other involuntary transfer
or acquisition, or through the exercise of eminent domain
authority by purchase or condemnation.
(iii) The defendant acquired the facility by inheritance or bequest.
In addition to establishing the foregoing, the defendant must establish that he
has satisfied the requirements of section 107(b)(3)(a) and (b).
Contribution:
A legal principle according to which an entity can seek to recover some of
the response costs for which it has already resolved liability with the United
States. For example, when several PRPs are liable for a hazardous substance
release, EPA is not required to pursue all of them. If EPA settles with or
wins its case against a subset of PRPs, then the right of contribution enables
the settling PRPs or those against whom a judgment is rendered to seek
recovery of a proportional share from other PRPs who were not named as
defendants in EPA's suit or settlement, but who nonetheless contributed to
the release.
Cost Recovery:
A process by which the U.S. government seeks to recover money previously
expended in performing any response action from parties liable under
CERCLA § 107(a). Recoverable response costs include both direct and
indirect costs.
Deed:
A written document that transfers ownership or an interest in real property to
another person.
Deed of Trust:
A document that pledges real property to secure a loan until the loan is
repaid. A deed of trust usually involves a title insurance company or escrow
company that acts on behalf of the lender. When you sign a deed of trust, in
effect you are giving a trustee title to the property (ownership), but you hold
the rights and privileges to use and live in or on the property.
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Defendant:
Demand Letter:
A person against whom a claim or charge is brought in a court of law.
A written demand for recovery of costs incurred under CERCLA. The
primary purposes of written demands are to formalize the demand for
payment of incurred costs plus future expenditures, inform potential
defendants of the dollar amount of those costs, and establish that interest
begins to accrue on expenditures. A demand letter may be incorporated into
the special notice letter.
De Micromis
Exemption:
In general, a party is not liable under CERCLA § 107 if it can demonstrate
that the total amount of the material containing hazardous substances that it
generated and arranged for disposal at, or accepted for transport to, an NPL
site was less than 110 gallons of liquid materials or less than 200 pounds of
solid materials, unless those substances contributed significantly to the cost
of the response action or natural resource restoration at the facility; the party
has been uncooperative with EPA's response actions at the site; or the party
has been convicted of a criminal violation for the conduct to which the
exemption would apply.
De Minimis
Contributor:
PRPs who are deemed by the settlement agreement to be responsible for only
a minor portion of the response costs at a particular facility. A determination
of a PRP's responsibility is made based on the volume, toxicity, or other
hazardous effects in comparison with other wastes at the facility. CERCLA
§ 122(g)(l)(A) expressly defines de minimis contributor.
De Minimis
Landowner:
PRPs who are deemed by the settlement agreement to be past or present
owners of the real property at which the facility is located who did not
conduct or permit the generation, transportation, storage, treatment or
disposal of any hazardous substance at the facility; did not contribute to the
release or threat of release of a hazardous substance at the facility through
any act or omission; and had no actual or constructive knowledge that the
property was used for the generation, transportation, storage, treatment, or
disposal of any hazardous substance at the time of purchase. CERCLA
§ 122(g)(l)(B) expressly defines de minimis landowner.
De Minimis
Settlement:
An agreement, either administrative or judicial, authorized by CERCLA
§ 122(g), between EPA and PRPs for a minor portion of response costs.
Easement:
A right to make limited use of someone else's real property. Utility
companies, for example, commonly have easements that allow them access
to real property they do not own for purposes of installing, inspecting,
maintaining, or repairing equipment. An easement is one form of
institutional control that may be required at a Superfund site if hazardous
substances remain there after remedial action is complete.
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Eminent Domain:
The power to take private property for public use. Under the U.S.
Constitution, there must be just compensation paid to the owners of this
property. EPA exercises its power of eminent domain through the process of
condemnation.
Enforcement
Actions:
EPA, state, or local legal actions to obtain compliance with environmental
laws, rules, regulations, or agreements, or to obtain penalties or criminal
sanctions for violations.
Environment
According to CERCLA § 101(8), "(A) the navigable the waters of the
contiguous zone, and the ocean waters of which the natural resources are
under the exclusive management authority of the United States under the
Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976, and (B) any other
surface water, ground water, drinking water supply, land surface or
subsurface strata, or ambient air within the United States or under the
jurisdiction of the United States."
Federal Register:
A federal government publication that includes proposed regulations,
responses to public comments received regarding proposed regulations, and
final regulations. The Federal Register is published every working day by the
Office of Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration,
Washington, DC 20408. The Federal Register publishes regulations and legal
notices issued by federal agencies. These include presidential proclamations
and executive orders, federal agency documents required by Congress to be
published, and other federal agency documents of public interest. The
Federal Register is available to the public via the internet and through public
libraries that are federal depositories, law libraries, and large university
libraries.
Force Majeure:
A clause common to construction contracts which protects the parties in the
event that a portion of the contract cannot be performed due to causes that
are outside the parties' control (i.e., problems that could not be avoided by
the exercise of due care, such as an act of God). These causes are known as
force majeure events. Force majeure provisions are included in
administrative orders on consent and consent decrees. These provisions
stipulate that the PRPs shall notify EPA of any event that occurs that may
delay or prevent work and that is due to force majeure. Two examples of
force majeure may be raised as defenses to liability. CERCLA § 107(b)
releases from liability any person who can establish by a preponderance of
the evidence that the release or threat of release of a hazardous substance
was caused solely by an act of God or an act of war.
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Freedom of
Information Act
(FOIA)
Federal statute (5 U.S.C. § 552 et seq.) that requires the government to
publish or otherwise make publicly available certain classes of agency
records and to make all other agency records publicly available upon written
request unless the statute specifically exempts them from disclosure.
Fund (Hazardous
Substance
Superfund or
Superfund Trust
Fund):
A fund established by section 9507 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to
help pay for cleanup of hazardous waste sites and enforcement action against
responsible parties.
General Notice
Letter (GNL):
A notice to inform PRPs of their potential liability for past and future
response costs and the possible future use of CERCLA § 122(e) special
notice procedures and the subsequent moratorium and formal negotiation
period.
Grantee:
A person to whom an estate or interest in real property passes, in or by a
deed.
Grantor:
A person from or by whom an estate or interest in real property passes, in or
by a deed.
Hazard Ranking
System (HRS):
The principal screening tool used by EPA to evaluate risks to public health
and the environment associated with abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous
waste sites. The HRS calculates a score based on the potential for hazardous
substances spreading from the site through the air, surface water, or ground
water, and on other factors such as nearby population. This score is the
primary factor in deciding if the site should be on the NPL and, if so, what
rank it should have compared to other sites on the list. A site must score 28.5
or higher to be placed on the NPL.
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Hazardous
Substance:
According to CERCLA § 101(14), "(A) any substance designated pursuant
to section 31 l(b)(2)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, (B) any
element, compound, mixture, solution, or substance designated pursuant to
section 102 of this Act, (C) any hazardous waste having the characteristics
identified under or listed pursuant to section 3001 of the Solid Waste
Disposal Act (but not including any waste the regulation of which under the
Solid Waste Disposal Act has been suspended by Act of Congress), (D) any
toxic pollutant listed under section 301(a) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act, (E) any hazardous air pollutant listed under section 112 of the
Clean Air Act, and (F) any imminently hazardous chemical substance or
mixture with respect to which the Administrator has taken action pursuant to
section 7 of the Toxic Substance Control Act. The term does not include
petroleum, including crude oil or any fraction thereof which is not otherwise
specifically listed or designated as a hazardous substance under
subparagraphs (A) through (F) of this paragraph, and the term does not
include natural gas, natural gas liquids, liquefied natural gas, or synthetic gas
usable for fuel (or mixtures of natural gas and such synthetic gas)."
Indian Tribe:
According to CERCLA § 101(36)," any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other
organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village, but not
including any Alaska Native regional or village corporation, which is
recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the
United States to Indians because of their status as Indians."
Information
Request Letter:
Innocent
Landowner:
Formal written request for information, authorized by CERCLA
§ 104(e)(2)(A) through (C), issued during an administrative investigation.
EPA is authorized to request information from any person who has or may
have information relevant to any of the following:
• the kind and quantity of materials that have been or are being
generated, treated, disposed of, stored at, or transported to a vessel or
facility;
• the nature or extent of a release or threatened release of a hazardous
substance, pollutant, or contaminant at or from a vessel or facility;
and
• the ability of a person to pay for or perform a cleanup.
Failure to respond to or providing an incomplete response to an
informational request is subject to statutory penalties.
A person who purchased or acquired real property without actual or
constructive knowledge that the property was used for the generation,
transportation, storage, treatment, or disposal of any hazardous substances.
PRPs may assert this claim as part of their defense, but only the court may
make this determination based on CERCLA §§ 107(b) and 101(35).
-------
Joint and Several
Liability:
A legal doctrine defining the scope of a defendant's liability. When more
than one PRP is involved at a site and the harm is indivisible, the court may
impose joint and several liability upon all parties involved at the site. In this
instance, each PRP involved at the site may be held individually liable for
the cost of the entire response action.
Judicial Review:
Review by a court of a decision rendered by a federal agency or department
or of an appeal challenging either a finding of fact or finding of law. Under
CERCLA, for example, the court provides judicial review prior to entry of
the consent decree. In addition, the court would provide judicial review of an
EPA decision if a PRP submitted a "petition to review" to a federal court of
appeals. The jurisdiction of the court and the scope of its review are defined
by CERCLA § 113(h) and the Judicial Review Act, 28 U.S.C. §§2341-2351.
Lead Agency:
The agency that primarily plans and implements cleanup actions. This could
be EPA, a state or political subdivision of a state, another federal agency, or
Indian tribe. Other agencies may be extensively involved in the process, but
the lead agency directs and facilitates activities related to a site, often
including enforcement actions.
Lease:
An ownership interest held by a landlord with the right of use and occupancy
conveyed by contract to others; usually consists of the right to receive rent
and the right to repossess on termination of the lease.
Lis Pendens:
Means "a suit pending." A lis pendens is a written notice that a lawsuit has
been filed involving the title to real property or some interest in that real
property.
Mineral Lease:
Created by the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, a U.S federal statute. The Act
authorizes the leasing of public lands for developing deposits of coal,
petroleum, natural gas, and other hydrocarbons.
Mining Claim:
A claim of real property in which metal ore or minerals may be located. It is
a description by boundaries of the real property containing the ore or
minerals.
-------
Municipal Solid
Waste (MSW):
Waste material generated by a household and waste material generated by a
commercial, industrial, or institutional entity, to the extent that the waste
material:
• is essentially the same as waste normally generated by a household;
• is collected and disposed of with other MSW as part of normal MSW
collection; and
• contains a relative quantity of hazardous substances no greater than
the relative quantity of hazardous substances contained in waste
generated by a typical single family household.
National Oil and
Hazardous
Substances
Pollution
Contingency Plan
(NCP):
The major framework regulation for the federal hazardous substances
response program. The NCP sets forth procedures and standards for how
EPA, other federal agencies, states, and private parties respond under
CERCLA to releases or threats of releases of hazardous substances, and
under CWA § 311, as amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, to
discharges of oil.
National Priorities
List (NPL)
The list compiled by EPA pursuant to CERCLA § 105 of uncontrolled
hazardous substance releases in the United States that are priorities for long-
term remedial evaluation and response.
Natural Resources:
According to CERCLA § 101((16), "land, fish, wildlife, biota, air, water,
ground water, drinking water supplies, and other such resources belonging
to, managed by, held in trust by, appertaining to, or otherwise controlled by
the United States (including the resources of the fishery conservation zone
established by the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976), and
State or local government, any foreign government, and Indian tribe, or, if
such resources are subject to a trust restriction on alienation, any member of
an Indian tribe."
Natural Resource
Damages:
Damages for injury or loss of natural resources as set forth in CERCLA
§§ 107(1) and lll(b) and NCP § 300.615.
Oil and Gas Lease:
A contractual agreement between the owner of a mineral (the lessor) and a
producer (the lessee) whereby the lessor grants the right to develop deposits
of minerals to the lessee.
Orphan Share:
A portion of cleanup costs that cannot be assessed to a PRP as a result of
either the PRP's insolvency or EPA's inability to identify PRP(s).
-------
Owner or
Operator:
According to CERCLA § 101(20), any person owning or operating a vessel
or facility, or in the case of a hazardous substance being accepted for
transportation, the common or contract carrier. It does not include a unit of
state or local government that acquired ownership or control involuntarily
through bankruptcy, tax delinquency, or abandonment.
Person:
According to CERCLA § 101(21), "an individual, firm, corporation,
association, partnership, joint venture, commercial entity, United States
Government, State, municipality, commission, political subdivision of a
State, or any interstate body."
Plaintiff:
A party who brings a legal action; the party who complains or sues in a civil
action and is so named on the record.
Plat Map:
A document drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land and
giving the legal descriptions of pieces of real property by lot, street, and
block number. It shows the land as subdivided into lots and the location and
boundaries of individual parcels with the streets, alleys, easements, and
rights of use over the land of another.
Pollutant or
Contaminant:
According to CERCLA § 101(33), "any element, substance, compound, or
mixture, including disease-causing agents, which after release into the
environment and upon exposure, ingestion, inhalation, or assimilation into
any organism, either directly from the environment or indirectly by ingestion
through food chains, will or may reasonably be anticipated to cause, death,
disease, behavioral abnormalities, cancer, genetic mutation, physiological
malfunctions (including malfunctions in reproduction) or physical
deformations, in such organisms or their offspring; except that the term
"pollutant or contaminant" shall not include petroleum, including crude oil
or any fraction thereof which is not otherwise specifically listed or
designated as a hazardous substance under subparagraphs (A) through (F) of
paragraph (14) and shall not include natural gas, liquefied natural gas, or
synthetic gas of pipeline quality (or mixtures of natural gas and such
synthetic gas)."
Potentially
Responsible Party
(PRP):
Any individual or entity including owners, operators, transporters, or
generators who may be liable under CERCLA § 107(a).
Quitclaim Deed:
Conveys to the grantee and the grantee's heirs and assigns in fee all of the
legal or equitable rights the grantor has in the property that existed at the
time of the conveyance.
-------
Record of Decision
(ROD):
The official Agency document that describes the remedial cleanup
alternatives that have been considered, selects the remedy, provides technical
background relevant to the decision, and explains how the decision complies
with the law.
Release:
According to CERCLA § 101(22), "any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring,
emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or
disposing into the environment (including the abandonment or discarding of
barrels, containers, and other closed receptacles containing any hazardous
substance or pollutant or contaminant), but excludes (A) any release which
results in exposure to persons solely within a workplace, with respect to a
claim which such persons may assert against the employer of such persons,
(B) emissions from the engine exhaust of a motor vehicle, rolling stock,
aircraft, vessel, or pipeline pumping station engine, (C) release of source,
byproduct, or special nuclear material from a nuclear incident, as those terms
are defined in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, if such release is subject to
requirements with respect to financial protection established by the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission under section 170 of such Act, or, for the purposes
of section 104 of this title or any other response action, any release of source
byproduct or special nuclear material from any processing site designated
under section 102(a)(l) of 302(a) of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation
Control Act of 1978, and (D) the normal application of fertilizer."
Remedial Action:
According to CERCLA § 101(24), "those actions consistent with permanent
remedy taken instead of or in addition to removal actions in the event of a
release or threatened release of a hazardous substance into the environment."
Generally, response actions that take longer than a non-time-critical removal
and are more complex than removals.
Removal:
According to CECLA § 101(23), "the cleanup or removal of released
hazardous substances from the environment, such actions as may be
necessary taken in the event of the threat of release... [and] such actions as
may be necessary to monitor, assess, and evaluate the release or threat of
release of hazardous substances..." Such evaluations include the RI/FS.
Removals are classified according to urgency as "emergency," for those
requiring immediate response; "time-critical," for those that take no more
than six months; and "non-time-critical" for removals that need up to a year
or more.
Remedial
Investigation/
Feasibility Study
(RI/FS):
Activities conducted at an NPL site by EPA or a PRP acting under an
ASAOC or (rarely) a unilateral administrative order (UAO) to assess site
conditions and evaluate alternatives to the extent necessary to select a
remedy that will be described in the record of decision (ROD) and clean up
the site in accordance with CERCLA § 121.
-------
Remedial
Design/Remedial
Action (RD/RA):
Response actions performed at an NPL site by EPA or a PRP under a CD
approved and entered by a federal court. RD is the engineered design of the
remedy selected by the RI/FS; RA is the construction and continuing
operation and maintenance of the remedy.
Settlement:
Resolution of a claim. Settlement occurs when a federal or state agency
enters into a written agreement with PRPs requiring them to pay for or
perform specified response actions. Settlements may be achieved
administratively through an administrative order on consent or judicially
through a consent decree.
Special Notice
Letter (SNL):
A written notice to a PRP providing information on potential liability,
conditions of the negotiation moratorium, future response actions, and
demand for past costs. The SNL is authorized under CERCLA § 122(e)(l)
and triggers the start of a negotiation moratorium.
Special or Limited
Warranty Deed:
Limits the liability of the grantor by warranting only what the deed explicitly
states; usually used to avoid assuming liability of a general warranty deed.
Statute of
Limitations (SOL):
The statutorily defined period of time within which the United States, on
behalf of EPA, must file a claim for cost recovery. If the United States does
not file a case within the SOL, it may not be able to recover its costs from
the PRPs.
Strict Liability:
Legal responsibility for damages without regard to fault or diligence. The
strict liability concept in CERCLA means that the federal government can
hold PRPs liable without regard to a PRP's fault, diligence, negligence, or
motive.
Superfund
Enterprise
Management
System (SEMS)
Superfund Enterprise Management System (SEMS) - An electronic
repository of Superfund documents routinely used to disseminate records in
response to FOIA requests, establishment of administrative records (ARs),
and litigation support. The system provides access to programmatic
information regarding Superfund site management, cost recovery, site
financial resources, enforcement actions, and supporting documentation.
The SEMS database application supports the electronic capture, imaging,
indexing and tracking of records that document investigation, cleanup, and
enforcement activities at potential existing hazardous waste sites. SEMS
integrates legacy Superfund data collection, reporting, and tracking modules
from the removal, remedial, federal facilities, enforcement, and emergency
response programs into a single system to support program activities and
decisions regarding Superfund site cleanups.
-------
Tax Deed/Sheriff A legal document that provides written proof of ownership of real property
Deed: acquired from the government at a tax sale. A tax sale is conducted by the
government after a stipulated period of time for the non-payment of tax on
real property.
Transporter: According to CERCLA § 107(a)(4), "any person who accepts or accepted
any hazardous substances for transport to disposal or treatment facilities,
incineration vessels or sites selected by such person, from which there is a
release or threatened release which causes the incurrence of response costs,
of a hazardous substance."
Warranty Deed: A warranty deed warrants that the grantor is the lawful owner of the
property, that the property is free from all encumbrances or liens, and that
the grantor will defend the title.
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Appendix C
Potentially Responsible Party
Internet Information Sources
(PRPIIS)
-------
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Table of Contents
Business Information 2
EPA Resources - Public 7
EPA Resources - Internal 9
Government Agencies 11
Law, Legal Sites 14
Investigative Resources 16
Maps and Aerial Photos 22
Mining Site Specific Resources 23
Real Property 25
Technical Information 26
* Denotes a fee for service Page 1
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Business Information
Annual
Reports and
SEC filings
The Public
Register
Online
Morning
Star
Document
Research*
U.S.
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission
Annual
Reports
http://www.annualreportservice.com/
http ://www. 1 OKWizard. com
http://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/webusers.htm
http ://www. annualreports. com/
Free directory of online annual reports.
Search for company SEC filings.
Subscription required.
Company information, shareholder
information, and SEC filings including annual
reports.
Free directory of online annual reports.
Bankruptcy
American
Bankruptcy
Institute*
http ://www.abiworld. org//AM/Template. cfm? Sectio
n=Home
Numerous online resources including
headlines, news, meeting information, court
opinions and other bankruptcy info.
Subscription is required.
Public
Access to
Court
Electronic
Records
(PACER)*
http://www.pacer.gov/
Access to federal court documents.
Registration is required. Fees are generally
$.08 a page.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 2
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Compliance
Information
Company
Profiles and
Information
Corporate
Affiliates
Occu. Safety
and Health
Admin.
(OSHA)
Proquest
Dialog*
Corporate
Information
*
Corporation
Wiki
Dun and
Bradstreet*
Hoovers
Online*
Dun and
Bradstreet*
Lexis
Corporate
Affiliations*
http://www.osha.sov/pls/imis/establishment.html
http://www.dialos.com/proquestdialos/
http://www.corporateinformation.com/home.aspx
www.corporationwiki.com
http://www.dnb.com
http://www.hoovers.com
http://www.dnb.com
http://www.corporateaffiliations.com/
Search for information on OSHA inspections
and violations.
Subscription service allowing detailed search
of hundreds of trade journals and market
sources.
Information on companies in 55 different
countries. Free snapshots reports as well as
more comprehensive reports for a fee.
Claims to have summaries on over 20 million
companies.
Search for business and financial information
on companies. Certain D & B information is
available through Lexis. Your region may
already have a subscription to access D & B
reports.
Source of company information, including
fmancials and links to websites. Free
snapshot reports and more comprehensive
reports available for a fee.
Financial information on many companies.
Database of relationships between companies.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 3
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Corporate
Financial
Information
Corporate
Records
Hoovers
Online*
Motley Fool
Mergent*
Yahoo!
Finance
E- Secretary
of State
National
Association
of
Secretaries
of State
Search
Systems
Coordinated
Legal Tech
Lexis*
http://www.hoovers.com
http://www.fool.com/
http://www.mergentonline.com/losin.php
http://fmance.vahoo.com/
http://www.e-secretarvofstate.com/
http://www.nass.org/state-business-
services/corporate-registration/
http://publicrecords.searchsvstems.net/United States
Free Public Records bv State/
http://www.coordinatedlegal.com/SecretarvOfState.
html
http://www.lexis.com
Financial information on many companies.
A variety of financial information.
A variety of tools available. This site requires
a subscription.
Financial news and information.
Free link to States' SOS websites.
National SOS organization. Provides links to
every State under Business Services section.
Free link to public records by state, county, or
city.
Similar to NASS, provides a link to the
Secretary of State in each State as well as
information about the cost.
Pay service, provides one-stop access to
corporate records for most states (Delaware
and NJ not covered).
Denotes a fee for service
Page 4
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
International
Business
Global 2000
British
Columbia*
Industry
Canada
Canadian
Stock
Exchange
Corporate
Information
Canadian
Business
Kompass
Mergent
Online*
Ministry of
Mining
http://www.forbes.com/global2000/
https://www.bconline.gov.bc.ca/
https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada
/fdrlCrpSrch.html?locale=en CA
http://www.sedar.com/
http://www.corporateinformation.com/home.aspx
http://www.ic.sc.ca/eic/site/ccc-rec.nsf/eng/home
http://www.kompass.com
http://www.mergentonline.com/losin.php
httD://www.eniDr.gov.bc.ca/MINING/GEOSCIENC
E/P ages/default, aspx
Forbes list of the World's 2000 biggest public
companies.
Access to Land Titles, Property Assessments,
BC Companies, registrations under the
Personal Property Security Act (i.e. Liens and
Security Agreements), and a range of other
useful information services.
Search for Federally incorporated Canadian
companies.
Access to most public securities documents
and information filed by public companies in
Canada.
Search for information about companies in 55
different countries.
Search for information on Canadian
companies.
Search for information about companies from
70 different countries.
Obtain information on international
companies, including annual reports.
Mining reports from the British Columbia
Ministry of Mining.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 5
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
International
Business
(con't)
Manufacturing
information
News
Oncorp
Direct
UK
Company
Registration
Companies
in the UK
EuroPages
GBR Direct
Industry
guide
SIC Codes
NAIC Codes
Business
Week
Journal of
Business
TheStreet
Wall Street
Journal
http://www.oncorp.com/
http s : //www. sov . uk/sovernment/organi sati ons/comp
anies-house
http://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/
http://www.europases.co.uk/#
http://www.sbrdirect.eu/companvSearch.aspx
http://www.thomasnet.com/
http://www.osha.sov/pls/imis/sicsearch.html
http ://www. census, sov/eos/www/naics/
http://www.businessweek.com
http ://www.bizi ournals. com/
http://www.thestreet.com
http://online.wsj .com/home-page
Search for information about corporations in
Ontario, Canada.
Select Find Company Information to search
for companies in England, Wales, Northern
Ireland, and Scotland.
General info on companies in the UK.
A Business to Business search engine with
information on more than 500,000 businesses
Search for information on companies in 18
Eastern and Western European countries.
Search by product service, company name,
brand name or industry.
Obtain industry specific information by SIC
code. Searchable by keyword as well.
Obtain industry specific information by NAIC
and SIC code. Searchable by keyword as
well.
A weekly business news magazine that has an
online issue with the information more
frequently updated.
This is nation's largest publisher of
metropolitan business journals and updates
websites for 41 print business journals.
Investment news.
International market and economic news.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 6
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Non-Profits
Guidestar
http: //www2. sui destar. org/
Provides detailed information on non-profits,
including IRS Form 990. Free to register.
Additional information available with
premium membership, $350/mo.
EPA Resources - Public
Administrative Record on
the Web
Enforcement
Economic Models
Environmental Response
Team
Environmental Terms and
Acronyms
EPA Libraries
Finding Potentially
Responsible Parties
Hazardous Waste Clean Up
Information
http://losserhead.epa.sov/arweb/public/advanced se
arch.isp
http ://www2 . epa. sov/enforcement
http ://www2 .epa. sov/enforcement/penalty-and-
financial-models
http ://www. ert. ors/
http ://www. epa. sov/OCEPAterms/
http://www.epa.sov/natlibra/ols.htm
http://www2.epa.sov/enforcement/fmdins-
potentiallv-responsible-parties-prp
http ://www. clu-in.ors/
EPA's Superfund Administrative Record
Database.
EPA's Compliance and Enforcement
website.
EPA's link to all financial computer models,
which evaluate a PRP's ability to pay clean
up costs.
EPA's Environmental Response Team's
website.
A glossary of environmental terms,
abbreviations and acronyms.
Provides the ability to search EPA libraries
for specific information and/or publications.
EPA's PRP Search website.
Contaminated Site Clean-up Information.
Provides information about innovative
treatment and site characterization
technologies to the hazardous waste
remediation community.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 7
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Office of Site Remediation
Enforcement (OSRE)
Information Request Letters
Links to State
Environmental Agencies
National Enforcement
Training Institute (NETI)
National Locator
National Priority List
OSC website
PRP Search Manual
Superfund
Enforcement Guidance
Documents
Superfund Information
System (CERCLIS)
Where You Live Site
http ://www2 . epa. sov/enforcement/superfund-
inf ortnati on-request-1 etter s
http ://www. epa. sov/epahome/state.htm
http ://www. epa. sov/compliance/trainins/neti/course
s.html
http://cfpub.epa.sov/locator/index.cfm
http ://www. epa. sov/superfund/sites/npl/frlist.htm
http://www.epaosc.org
http ://www2 .epa. sov/enforcement/report-prp-
search-manual-2009-edition-20 1 1 -addendum
http ://cfpub . epa. sov/compliance/resources/pol
icies/cleanup/superfund/
http ://cumulis. epa. sov/supercpad/cursites/srch
sites.cfm
http ://www. epa. sov/epahome/wherevoulive.ht
m
Links to EPA 104(e) Information request
letters and standard questions.
EPA' s web link to state environmental
Agencies.
Listing of classes that are provided by EPA's
enforcement training institute.
EPA's electronic phone book.
Provides information concerning sites that
are proposed, listed and/or deleted from the
National Priorities List.
EPA's web site for Removal Actions.
Link to EPA's PRP Search Manual.
Link to Superfund guidance documents.
Publicly available access to EPA's
Superfund Information System.
Link to various web locations that
provide information concerning the
location of hazardous substances within
a community.
Denotes a fee for service
PageS
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
EPA Resources - Internal
Office of Site Remediation
Enforcement (OSRE)
http ://intranet. epa. gov/oeca/osre/index.html
Home page for OSRE's Intranet.
Office of Site Remediation
Enforcement (OSRE)
http://cfmt.rtpnc.epa.gov/ioic/sme/
ORSE subject matter contact roster.
Office of Superfund
Remediation and Technology
Innovation
http://intranet.epa.gov/oerrinet/
Office of Superfund Remediation and
Technology Innovation main website.
CERCLA Enforcement
Project Manager Handbook
http ://intranet. epa. gov/oeca/osre/documents/hbk-pdf/
The link provides an overview of the roles
and responsibilities of the remedial project
manager and the on-scene coordinator
(RPM/OSC) in identifying and
communicating with PRPs; coordinating with
communities, states, tribes, and natural
resource trustees; negotiating agreements for
site cleanup; initiating administrative and
judicial enforcement actions; selecting site
remedies; recovering EPA's response costs;
and overseeing PRP-lead response actions.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 9
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Financial Information
Calculators
Financial
Models
Home
Values
Interest
rates;
industry
discount
rates
Investment
Information
Loan rates
Municipal-
ities
Yahoo! Finance
EPA Enforcement
Models
Yahoo Homes
Zillow
Federal Reserve
MorningStar*
Bankrate.com
Bestrate.com
Munifilings.com*
http://fmance.vahoo.com/calculator/index
http ://www2 . epa. gov/enforcement/penalty-
and-fmancial-models
https://homes.vahoo.com/
http://www.zillow.com/
http://www.federalreserve.sov/releases
http://www.morninRstar.com/7pgi d=hetabhome
http://www.bankrate.com/
http://www.bestrate.com/
http://www.munifilinRS.com/munifilings/Index
Action, do
A variety of financial calculators.
Download BEN, ABEL, INDIPAY,
MUNIPAY, and PROJECT.
Current and historical information on interest
rates, industry discount rate, etc.
Investment news, information, tools and
calculators. Registration (free regular
membership required to use portfolio feature.
Premium (fee) membership for access to analyst
research and stock reports.
Current mortgage and other loan rates.
Current mortgage and other loan rates.
Budget, annual reports, other information
related to municipalities, school districts, and
many municipally owned or operated entities.
Registration and search is free, pay per report.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 10
-------
Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Non-Profits
City-Data
Guidestar
Salary.com
http ://www. citv-data.com/
http ://www2. guidestar. org/
http://www.salair.com/rnvsalarv.asp
Useful Site for Municipal ATPs.
Provides detailed information on non-profits,
including IRS Form 990. Free to register.
Additional information available with premium
membership, $350/mo.
Salary comparisons by profession and location.
Government Agencies
Bureau of Economic Analysis
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Bureau of
Land
Management
Global
Records
Land and
Mineral Use
Bureau of Prisons
Census Bureau
http://www.bea.sov/
http ://www.bi s. sov/
http://www.slorecords.blm.gov/
http ://www.blm . sov/lr2000/
http://www.bop.sov/
http ://factfinder2 . census . sov/faces/nav/i sf/pases/
index. xhtml
Link to various economic indicators.
Crime statistics and court statistic information;
no individual or company information.
Search Federal land records, surveys, plats,
field notes, status, etc.
Provides reports on BLM land and mineral use
authorizations for oil, gas, and geothermal
leasing, rights-of-ways, coal and other mineral
development, land and mineral title, mining
claims, withdrawals, classifications, and more
on federal lands or on federal mineral estate
Link to the Bureau of Prisons. It includes the
ability to search for inmates who have been
located in federal prisons.
Link to United States census information.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 11
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Census Bureau (Pre-set profiles
of communities)
County Courthouses
Courts (district, appeals,
bankruptcy)
Department of Interior -
Bureau of Land Records
Department of Justice
(attorneys)
Department of Labor
Federal Election Commission
Federal Reserve Board
Financial Crimes Enforcement
Network
Government Phone Numbers
Government Printing Office
http://censtats.census.sov/pub/Profiles.shtml
http://www.naco.org/counties/pases/fmdacountv
.aspx
http://www.uscourts.sov/court locator.aspx
http://www.slorecords.blm.sov/search/default.as
EX
http://www.iustice.sov/usao/
http ://www.bls. sov/
http://www.fec.sov/fmance/disclosure/norindsea
.shtml
http ://www.federalreserve. sov/econresdata/defau
lt.htm
http ://www.fmcen. sov
http://www.usa.sov/directorv/federal/index.shtm
1
http://www.spoaccess.sov
Link to pre-established sets of census
information for communities in the United
States.
Link to county websites.
Link to federal court information.
Searchable database of BLM's General Land
Office Records
Link to information on the United States
Attorney's Office.
Link to the Department of Labor. Provides
information concerning various economic
indicators.
Individual contributions to political campaigns.
Link to the Federal Reserve Board's economic
research information.
Main web link to the Department of Treasury's
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. This
Site now includes the Money Services
Business information formerly available at
www.msb.gov.
Listing of federal state and local government
phone numbers.
Main link to the Government Printing Office.
Useful access portal to all U.S. government
publications.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 12
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Internal Revenue
Service
National Archives
National Criminal Justice
Reference Service
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission Tracking
Office of Surface
Reclamation and
Occupational
Safety & Health
Administration
Mining
Enforcement
Index to site
Inspection
Information
Office of Patents*
Trademarks
Securities and Exchange
Commission (EDGAR)
US, State & Local Government
U.S. Marshals Service
http://www.irs.sov
http ://www. archives . sov/
http://www.nci rs. sov
http ://nrctrackins. ornl . sov/
http://www.wrcc.osmre.sov/resources.shtm
http ://www. osha. sov
http://www.osha.sov/oshstats/index.html
http://www.uspto.sov/trademarks/index.isp
http ://www. sec. sov/edsar/searchedsar/companvs
earch.html
http://www.usa.sov/Topics/Reference Shelf. sht
ml
http://www.usdoi.sov/marshals/
Main access point for information provided by
the Internal Revenue Service.
Main link to the National Archives.
Federally funded resource offering justice and
substance abuse information.
Search for complex NRC sites and expired
NRC licenses.
Provides links to OSM's databases and other
websties on abandoned mines, applications,
permits, operators, and environmental
violations at mines, maps and geospatial and
natural resource information,
Main link to the Office of Safety and Health
Administration.
Link to OSHA inspection and accident
investigation information.
Main link to information concerning patents
and trademarks.
Link to the Securities and Exchange
Commission's ("SEC") Electronic Data
Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval System
(EDGAR). This database allows the ability to
research company filings with the SEC.
Link to federal, state and local websites.
The U.S. Marshals Office can assist EPA by
serving notices and may accompany EPA staff
in questionable locations.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 13
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Law, Legal Sites
Code of
Federal
Regulations
Gov't
Printing
Office
Cornell
University
Code of Federal
Regulations, Federal
Register, and more
Federal Acquisition
Regulation
Federal Register
Lawyers
Martindale
locator
Find a
lawyer
Bar
associations
http ://www. access, spo.sov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-
search.html
http ://www. law. Cornell . edu/cfr/text
http://www.heinonline.org/HOLAVelcome7collec
tion=fedreg
https://www.acquisition.sov/far/
http://www.spoaccess.sov/fr/index.html
http ://www.martindale. com
http ://www.fmdlaw. com
http://www.bestcase.com/statebar.htm
Searchable CFR database from 1996.
Searchable CFR database.
ABA journals, most cited journals, criminal
justice journals, intellectual property library,
CFR from 1938, FR from 1936, U.S. Attorney
General opinions, legislative history,
Presidential and Supreme Court libraries,
statutes.
FAR regulations and GSA forms library.
Federal Register from 1994 with links to
libraries for FRs prior to 1994.
Find a lawyer.
Find a lawyer.
State bar association links.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 14
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Legal
research
pages
Legislation
pending in
Congress;
votes, bills,
laws
Westlaw*
Lexis*
Justia
Senate
House
Legislative information
(The Library of Congress)
Supreme Court Decisions
U.S. Code
U.S. House
Cornell
University
U.S. Courts
http ://www. westlaw. com
http://www.lexis.com
http://dockets.justia.com/
http://www.senate.sov
http ://www.house. sov
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas.php
http ://www. law. Cornell . edu/supct/
http://uscode.house.gov
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text
http : //www. uscourts . sov/court 1 ocator . aspx
Online legal research service for legal and law
related materials and services.
Comprehensive databases of law, business,
public records and news. Your legal office may
already have an account.
Search Federal Court dockets.
U.S. Senate.
U.S. House of Representatives.
Bills, resolutions, congressional record,
committee reports, searchable by bill text.
Supreme Court decisions, briefs, links to briefs,
oral argument recordings 1990 - present.
U.S. House of Rep.; searchable code from
1988; link to Federal Register.
Searchable U.S. Code.
Links to all U.S. Courts. Documents are
available using PACER.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 15
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Investigative Resources
Almanacs
Archived
webpages
Directories
Directories
(con't)
Cyber
Cemetery
Way Back
Machine
Anywho
AT&T
Email
addresses
Freeality
Infobel
Reverse
address
directory
Search
Systems
Superpages
Switchboard
Toll Free
Numbers
http://www.infoplease.com/index.html
http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/default.htm
http : //www. archive . org/web/web . php
http ://www. anvwho. com/reverse-lookup
http ://www. corp . att. com/directory/
http://mv.email.address.is/
http://www.freealitv.com/fmdc.htm
http ://www.infobel . com/en/world/index, aspx
http://www.reverseaddressdirectorv.com
http://publicrecords.searchsvstems.net/index.php
http ://www. superpases . com
http://www.switchboard.com
http://inter800.com/
Miscellaneous information with links to
almanacs, atlases, encyclopedias and more.
Search for archived copies of government
webpages.
Search for archived copies of websites.
Reverse phone.
Find a business or person using AT&T's
Directory Assistance.
Searches Yahoo!, Switchboard, W.E.D,
InfoSpace, and Look4U, as well as reverse
email address search and tips on finding email
addresses.
Search public records by category or state or
nationwide.
Find anyone anywhere in the world. Available
in multiple languages.
Reverse address, phone.
General Information Search (i.e. zip code, area
code).
Business Directory
Personal and Business Directory.
Toll free number directory.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 16
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Federal
Gov't
Directories
Find people
Whowhere
FedStats
Louisiana
State
University
Libraries
Yahoo
Searchbug
Westlaw*
Clear*
Public
Data*
Experian/
MetroNet*
Lexis*
http://www.whowhere.com
http://fedstats.sites.usa.gov
http://www.lib.lsu.edu/sov/index.html
http://search.vahoo.com/people/email.html
http ://www. searchbus.com/peoplefmder/
http://web2.westlaw.com/sisnon/default.wl?fn=%
5FtOD&newdoor=true&rs=WLW 1 1 %2E04&vr=2
%2EO
https://clear. thomsonreuters.com/index.isp
http://www.publicdata.com
https ://www.infolookup. experian. com/metr
onet/
http://www.lexis.com
White and yellow pages.
Statistics from 100 government agencies.
Federal agency directory.
Search for people and businesses information.
Personal and Business directory with
additional services if you submit an
email address in which the information
can be sent.
Search for legal information, as well as
parties to lawsuits. Your legal office
may have an account.
Search for business or personal
information with an address or name.
This service was previously known as
ChoicePoint, Autotrack, and CP Clear.
Search criminal, motor vehicle, drivers'
license, sex offenders, voter, property
tax, federal, Secretary of State, and
professional license from select states.
Credit Reports, business searches, and
personal searches.
People finder, real property searches,
liens and encumbrances, etc.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 17
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Find
People
(con't)
Accurint*
Federal
Prisoners
Zaba
New
Ultimates
Investigator's Guide to
Sources of Information
Library of Congress
Linda Hall Library
Marine
Vessels
NOAA
Boat Info
World
USCG
http ://www. accurint. com/
http://www.bop.sov/inmateloc/
http ://www.zabasearch. com/
http://www.newultimates.com/
http://www.fas.org/irp/gao/osi-97-2/soi ch4.htm
http://www.loc.gov/index.html
http://www.lindahall.org
http://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/stl/CoastGuard/Ves
selBvName.html
http ://www.boatinfoworld. com/
http://cgmix.uscg.mil/PSIX/PSIXSearch.aspx
Lexis product, provides comprehensive
information on individuals with one
search.
Locate inmates in Federal prisons.
People and address research.
People, phone number, and address
research.
List of investigative databases.
Largest library in the world; services include
Ask a Librarian, photo duplication; see FAQs.
Library of science, engineering and
technology; document delivery services;
searchable catalog; reference and search
services.
Searchable database of vessel names and
information.
Searchable database of vessel names and
information.
Searchable database of vessel names and
information.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 18
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Municipal-
ities
City Data
Munifilings.
com*
National Archives
National Response Center
News-
papers
Personal
Property
Digital First
Media
News
Voyager
Collect.com
EBay
Kelley Blue
Book
Kovels.com
Nada
Guides
http ://www. city-data, com/
http://www.munifilinRS.com/munifilings/IndexAc
tion.do
http ://www. archives, sov/index. html
http://www.nrc.uscs. mil/apex/f?p=109: 1 :244660
8262617462
http://www.digitalfirstmedia.com/products/
http://www.naa.org/
http ://www. collect, com/
http://www.ebav.com/
http://www.kbb.com/
http://www.kovels.com/
http://www.nadasuides.com/
Includes photos, statistics, maps, home values,
crime data, etc.
Budget, annual reports, other information
related to municipalities, school districts, and
many municipally owned or operated entities.
Registration and search is free, pay per report.
Searchable databases of historical information.
Query reported releases of hazardous
substances by company or location.
(Temporarily disabled while they deal with
security vulnerabilities. Summary date is
available.)
Selected newspaper links in selected states.
Links to all major newspapers; search by state,
no logins.
Antiques, collectibles values. Registration
required.
Online auction.
Car values.
Antiques, collectibles values. Registration
required.
Car, boat, RV, motorcycle, mobile home
values.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 19
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Photo
editing Tool
JPegSnoop.
com
http://ipegsnoop.en.softonic.com/
Free software that claims to analyze photos and
determine whether they have been edited.
Public
Records
Directories
BRB
Publication
http ://www.brbpub. com/free-public-records/
Public records databases by state; links to free
databases (similar to Search Systems before it
became a pay service).
Search
Systems
http://publicrecords.searchsystems.net/
Lists 38,541 searchable public record
databases; no direct link unless a paying
member, but will show which databases are
free of charge.
Regional Information
Sharing Systems*
http://www.iir. com/Information_Sharing/riss/defa
ult.aspx
National program of regionally oriented
services designed to enhance the ability of
criminal justice agencies to share information;
membership required.
Sanborn
Maps
EDRNet*
http://www.edrnet.com/environmental-
services/sanborn-maps
Order Sanborn Fire Insurance maps.
Library of
Congress*
http://www.loc.gov/rr/geogmap/sanborn/
Over 6,000 maps available online. Over
675,000 available in person. The searchable
database includes only those sheets added since
1981.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 20
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Sanborn
Maps
(cont'd)
Local
Universities
(examples:
Penn State,
Dartmouth,
University
of Florida,
University
of Utah,
University
of Colorado-
Boulder ,
UC Berkley)
Local Public
Libraries
(examples:
Chicago, IL;
Ann Arbor,
MI; Everett,
MA; Iowa;
Georgia;
Kansas City,
MO)
http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/digital/sanborn.
html
http ://www. dartmouth.edu/~library/maproom/san
borns.html?mswitch-redir=classic
http ://ufdc.ufl .edu/sanborn
http ://content.lib .utah. edu/cdm/az?page=0
http://libnet.colorado.edu/sanborn/about.asp
http://cluster3.lib.berkeley.edu/EART/snb-
intr.html
http ://www. chipublib. org/resource/illinoi s-
sanborn-maps/
http ://www. aadl .org/node/93 08
http: //epl s. org/nw-hi story/di gital -
collections/sanborn-maps
http ://www. statelibraryofiowa. org/services/online
-resources/resources/sanborn-login
http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/sanborn/7Welcome
http://www. kchi story. org/cdm4/sanborn splash. p
ho
Check with universities in your State - many
have extensive collections of area Sanborn
Maps available.
Many state libraries and public libraries in
large urban areas have collections of Sanborn
Maps available.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 21
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
State and
Local Gov't
Directories
Federal
Directories
U.S.
Geological
Survey
Zip codes
GovEngine.
com
State and
Local
Government
on the Net
State
Agencies
USA.gov
Earth
Sciences
Library
USPS
http ://www. govengine. com/
http://www.statelocalsov.net/index.cfm
http://wikis.ala.org/godort/index.php/State Agen
cv Databases
http ://www.usa. gov/
http://library.usgs.gov/
http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/welcome.jsp
Federal, state and local government
information.
Directory of state, county, city government
websites.
Links to State agencies.
"Government made easy."
The largest earth science library in the world.
Find zip code for an address.
Maps and Aerial Photos
Bing Maps
Enviromapper
http://www.bing.com/maps/
http://www.epa.gov/emefdata/em4ef.home
Similar to Google Earth. View 3d aerial photos,
maps, and more. Free service but requires a
software download.
U.S. EPA's interactive maps and aerial
photography to display facility-based
information from the Envirofacts Warehouse.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 22
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Freeality.com
Historic Aerial Photos
Google Earth
Google Maps
Mapquest
Track Plotter
U.S.
Geological
Survey
National
Geologic Map
Database.
National Map
http://www.freealitv.com/maps.htm
http://www.historicaerials.com/
http://www.soosle.com/earth/index.html
http://maps. soosle.com/maDS
http://www.mapquest.com/
http ://www.tractplotter. com/
http://nsmdb.usss.sov/nsmdb/nsm catalos.ora.htm
i
http ://nationalmap . sov/
Directory of map-related sites.
Obtain older aerial photos for some areas. Free
to use, photos available for purchase.
Satellite imagery, maps, terrain and 3D
buildings. Free service but requires a software
download.
Maps and directions. Limited aerial photos.
Maps and directions.
Map by latitude and longitude.
National Geologic Map Database. Search USGS
maps.
Maps of North America
Mining Site Specific Resources
Abandoned Mine Land
Inventory System
http://amlis.osmre.sov/Default.aspx
Computer system used to store, manage, and
report on the Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement's Inventory of
Abandoned Mine Land Problems
Denotes a fee for service
Page 23
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Applicant/Violator System
Coalex Research Reports
Department of Interior -
Bureau of Land Records
Land and Mineral Use
National Mine Map
Repository
University of Idaho
University of Utah
https://avss.osmre.sov/
http://www.osmre.sov/resources/Coalex.shtm
http://www.slorecords.blm.sov/search/default.as
http://www.blm.sov/lr2000/
http ://mmr . osmre . sov/
http://www.lib.uidaho.edu/special-collections/
http://www.lib.utah.edu/portal/site/marriottlibrarv
/
DOT, Office of Surface Mining database.
Information on applicants, permittees,
operators, application and permit records, as
well as unabated or uncorrected environmental
violations of SMCRA are maintained in this
nationwide database.
Reports are products of research and analysis
conducted on specific issues relating to the
regulation of Surface Mining Control and
Reclamation Act of 1977.
Searchable database of BLM's General Land
Office Records
Provides reports on BLM land and mineral use
authorizations for oil, gas, and geothermal
leasing, rights-of-ways, coal and other mineral
development, land and mineral title, mining
claims, withdrawals, classifications, and more
on federal lands or on federal mineral estate.
Searchable index of OSMRE' s mine map
repository.
This collection has information about the Day
Mining Co. and associated mining
companies. Also personal records of Jerome
Day.
Mining company records—covering Utah,
Idaho, Wyoming
Denotes a fee for service
Page 24
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin,
Ecology and Natural
Resources Collection
http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialcoll/
http://disicoll.librarv.wisc.edu/EcoNatRes/Search
.html
Major resource for rare and archival materials
covering a broad range of topics, formats, and
periods. Research strengths include the history
of the Pacific Northwest, Alaska and Western
Canada.
Searchable collection of Mineral Yearbooks
1933-1993.
Real Property
ABC's of Real Estate
DataQuick*
HomeSeekers.com
Netronline.com
RealEstate.com
Rent-O-Meter
Zillow
http : //www. real e stateab c . com/
http ://www.dataquick. com/
http://www.homeseekers.com/
http ://www.netronline. com/
http://www.realestate.com/homevalues/
http://www.rentometer.com
http ://www.zillow. com/?kws=zwillow
Real estate and mortgage resources.
Real property ownership, appraisal information.
Residential property sales and value information.
Real estate information and public records
search. Also includes aerial photos resource.
Residential property sales and value information.
Residential rental comparison.
Real estate information and property values.
The information available varies by region
searched.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 25
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Technical Information
Agency for
Toxic
Substances
and
Disease
Registry
(ATSDR)
Hazardous
Substances
ToxFAQs
Cleaner Solutions Database
Efunda (Engineering
Fundamentals)
Envirofacts Master
Chemical Integrator
Material
Safety Data
Sheets
(MSDS)
MSDS.com
Seton
Resource
Center
Military specification
lubricant products
National Library of
Medicine
http://www.atsdr.cdc.sov/SPL/index.html
http://www.atsdr.cdc . sov/toxfaqs/index. asp
http://www.cleanersolutions.ors/? action=vendor search&pa
se=0&submit=Submit&sortbv=product&sortasc=l
http://www.efunda.com/processes/processes home/process.c
fm
http://www.epa.sov/enviro/html/emci/chemref/
http://www.msds.com/
http://www.seton.com/static/help/help_pases/crc.html
http ://www.mtpinc-
exporter.com/chemicals/chem mil spec. htm
http://sis.nlm.nih.sov/enviro.html
Hazardous substance and toxicological
information.
ToxFaqs: Frequently asked questions
about contaminants found at hazardous
waste sites.
Search for products based on vendor-
recommended contaminant, substrate
and equipment information.
Descriptions of industrial processes.
Search the EMCI Chemical References
Web Pages.
MSDS search by chemical, product
name.
MSDS search by manufacturer name.
Listing by specification number and
title of specification.
Environmental health and toxicology
information. Also, access to TOXNET,
a collection of databases on hazardous
chemicals, toxic releases, and
environmental health.
Denotes a fee for service
Page 26
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Potentially Responsible Party Internet Information Sources, 05/21/2014
(PRPIIS)
Radiochemistry Society
Toxnet- Toxicology Data
Network
US Metric Association
http://www.radiochemistrv.org/periodictable/
http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/
http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/common.html
Periodic table.
Data on toxicology, hazardous
chemicals, environmental health,
releases.
toxic
Metric conversions.
Denotes a fee for service
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United States Environmental Protection Agency
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