00124C U L L E N - R L I S K O W ( 1 S 9 3 - I 9 7 I )A U S T I N W L E W I S < I S M O - I 9 7 1 (W I L L I A M M M E T E R S "R O B E R T T J O R O E N 'C H A R G E S C G R E M t t _ l _ i O N *G E N E W L A F i ^ T E 'B ' l - L Y H H i N E S *

J A M E S U P E u L E T i E R *T H O M A S o , H A R D E M A N 'J O H N M K I N G *E D W A R D J . G A Y I S *K E N N E T H E . G O R D O N . J R *W I L L I A M R , P M T T S *U E O N J . R E Y M O N O . J R . " .J B E R R Y S T J O H ' ^ _ J R . "D O N A L D R , A S A U N Z A *

J O H N M . W I L S O N *C H A R L E S M . S T E E N *L A W R E N C E P S I M O N , J R L "F R E D E R I C K W B R A D L E Y *K E R R Y M , M A S S A R l "S . G E N E F E N D L E R *T H O M A S F , G E T T E N *G E O R G E H . R O B I N S O N . J R . *G E O R G E J . D O M A S *M A R I L Y N C . M A L . O N E Y *R O B E R T W B O O K S H . J R .

J O S E P H C G I G L i O . J R . *B R U C E J , O R E C KP A T R I C K W G R A Y

L I S K O W & L E W I SA T T O R N E Y S A T L A W

N E W O R L E A N S , L A . 7 O I 3 9O N E S H E L L S Q U A R E

F I F T I E T H F L O O RT E L E P H O N E ( S O - 4 ) S S t - 7 9 7 9

• T W . X S I O - 9 S I - 5 2 5 2

L A F A Y E T T E : , L A . 705053 2 ' T R A V I S S T .

P, O BOX 5 S O O 8T E L E P H O N E ( 3 t B ) H 3 2 - 7 A 2 4

..New O r l e a n s , L o u i s i a n aA u g u s t 7, 1986

D E B O R A H B A KR O B E R T E H O L ~ .J O E B N C R M A NT H O M A S M M - N A M A R AJ A M E S N M A N S F I E L D H IB I L L Y J O O M I N G U EL A M B E R T M L A P E R O U S E ~ "F R A N K E M A S S E ^ I G A L EP H I L I P K J O N E S . J RA N N E E , T A T EW l L L I A M W . P U G HJ U L I E E S C H W A R T ZC H A R L E S S G R - l - F F t S H IR i C M A R O W . R E V E L S . J RM A R T H A O - T H O M A S

J O S E P H P H E B E R TM A R G U E R I T E A . N O O N A NB R U C E V . S C H E W ED A V I D W , L E E F E

J A M E S D . M c M I C H A E LR I C H A R D E . A N O E R S O NG E O R G E W . P U G H , J R .W M B L A K E B E N N E T TM A R K A . L O W EG E O R G E D E N E G R E . J RD O N K H A Y C R A F TB A R B A R A 6 E N N E T T B L A C K B U R NE O W I N W , D E N N A R DJ A M E S A B R O W NG R E G G G U I D R Y• P R O F E S S I O N A L C O R P O R A ^ O * *

V I A H A N D D E L I V E R Y 'M r . R u s s e l l H . W y e r , Direc t orH a z a r d o u s S i t e C o n t r o l Divi s i on( A t t e n t i o n N P L S t a f f )O f f i c e o f Emergency & Remedial Respon s e( W H - 5 4 8 E )Environmenta l P r o t e c t i o n A g e n c y4 0 1 M . S t r e e t , S . W .W a s h i n g t o n , D . C . 20460

RE:

L A . D E P T . O FE N V I R O N M E N T A L Q U A L I T Y .

I A S D I V I S I O NComments o n P r o p o s e d N P L L i s t i n g , C o m b u s t i o n ,I n c . , Denham S p r i n g s , L o u i s i a n a

Dear M r . W y e r : _ - . . . . . . . . . * • ' • 'T h e s e comments are submi t t ed on b e h a l f ; r o f the S t e e r i n g ~" - ' :

C o m m i t t e e of the p o t e n t i a l l y ; r e s p o n s i b l e "parties" j L d e n t i ; f ~ i e " a ' ; " : •" Ib y t h e L o u i s i a n a D e p a r t m e n t o f •"Envixonmehta l--X?ual : i ty" f " D E ' Q " ' ) : ' : " i l " ;

in connect ion with the " C o m b ' u s f i d r i , " I n c . 1 , ' oil r e c lamat i on T .::...- -f a c i l i t y i n Denham S p r i n g s ' / ' L o u i s i a n a " , " i n c o n n e c t i o ' n ' V i t h t h e " "EPA 1 s p r o p o s a l to p l a c e the Combus t ion si.te on the N a t i o n a lP r i o r i t i e s L i s t . 5 1 F e d . Regv ' 2 1 0 9 9 - ( J u n e ' 1 0 , 1 9 8 ' 6 . ) . ' A t t a c h e dto th i s l e t t e r i s a t e chnical cri t ique of t h i s p r o p o s e d l a s t i n g " ,e n t i t l e d " A n a l y s i s o f H a z a r d Ranking S y s t e m S c o r e , : C o m b u s t i o n , 'I n c . , S i t e , L i v i n g s t o n P a r i s h , Lou i s i ana , " dated A u g u s t 5 ,1 9 8 6 , p r e p a r e d b y E R M - S o u t h w e s t , I n c . T h e C o m b u s t i o n S t e e r i n gC o m m i t t e e requested E R M - S o u t h w e s t to conduct an a n a l y s i s tode t ermine whether the EPA had p r o p e r l y p r e p a r e d a H a z a r dRanking S y s t e m score for the Combu s t i on s i t e , and to de t erminewhether the s i te should be p l a c e d on the N P L . E R M - S o u t h w e s thas c o n c l u d e d that there is no t e chnical basi s for p l a c i n g t h i ss i t e on th e N P L . • • • •• • ••• • . • • - -NPL.

143940 r I I I , , L , i i i i i i i i , j , i . i . : n l l < ; < ~ u u l i < , j : l < „ ^ r u f y i i i i "

L I S K O W & L E W I SM r . R u s s e l l H . W y e r , D i r e c t o r . . P A G E 2

As set f o r t h in the i n t r o d u c t i o n to the r e g u l a t o r yd e s c r i p t i o n o f th e hazard ranking sy s t em m o d e l , th e p u r p o s eof t h i s scoring sy s t em is "to i d e n t i f y 400 f a c i l i t i e s in then a t i o n w a r r a n t i n g t h e h i g h e s t p r i o r i t y f o r remedial a c t i on ,"and to e s t a b l i s h numerical cr i t er ia "based on r e l a t i v e risk ordanger" a s s o c i a t e d wi th th e f a c i l i t y . 40 C . F . R . Part 300,A p p e n d i x A , S e c t i o n 1 . 0 ( 1 9 8 5 ) . T h e c o m p o s i t e m i g r a t i o n score" S ( m ) , " s u p p o s e d l y " r e f l e c t s t h e p o t e n t i a l f o r harm t o humansor the environment f r o m m i g r a t i o n of a hazardous sub s tanceaway f r o m the f a c i l i t y by routes invo lv ing g r o u n d w a t e r ,s u r f a c e water, o r air." I d . I f S ( m ) exceeds 2 8 . 5 , then t h eE P A ' s r e g u l a t i o n s a l l o w t h e s i t e t o b e p l a c e d o n t h e N P L .S ( m ) i s a c o m p o s i t e o f three "migrat ion route" scores, i n c l u d i n g" S ( g w ) , " t h e "groundwater" score; " S ( s w ) , " t h e s u r f a c e waterscore; and " S ( a ) , " the a ir score.The a d m i n i s t r a t i v e record a s s o c ia t ed with th e p r o p o s e dl i s t i n g o f the Combu s t i on s i t e shows that the scores forthat s i t e were S ( g w ) , 2 2 . 5 ; S ( s w ) , 10.91; a n d S ( a ) , 5 5 . 3 8 .

The c o m p o s i t e S (m) score was thus 35.11. S (m) exceeds 28.5only because of the "air score," and thus the s i te can bep l a c e d on the NPL o n l y if the "air score" has been p r o p e r l yd e t e r m i n e d .The air migra t i on score was based on one s a m p l e c o l l e c t e db y t h e Lou i s iana D E Q o n ' J u n e 1 3 , 1985. T h a t s a m p l e d e t e c t e d1 , 4 - d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e in a concentrat ion of 14 p a r t s per t r i l l i o n ,one inch f r o m the s u r f a c e of one of the oil r e c lamat i on p i t sat the C o m b u s t i o n s i te. T h i s c oncentra t ion is bare ly abovethe lower level o f d e t e c t i o n of the s a m p l i n g instrumentation.. ,and c l e a r l y does not r e p r e s e n t ' ' -a threat o r " " ' h a z a r d ' ' - t o ^ e a r b y " - -r e s i d e n t s or to the environment..' T h i s - c o n c e n t r a t i o n - in ; "itse-l-fi s l e s s than one-mil l ion-hh" O f : ' a n y a p p l i c a b l e 8-hour workp la c e ' .exposure s t a n d a r d e s t a b l i s h e d b y - t h e O c c u p a t i o n " ' S a f e t y and r > " - ' - ' -H e a l t h A d m i n i s t r a t i o n " ' fo.r : d i c h l b r b b ' e n z e h e ; "Moreover, rap id • : ~d i s p e r s i o n in the ambient "air; would make* these" concentrat ionsu n d e t e c t a b l e a t any s i g n i f i c a n t - d o w n w i n d d i s tanc e f r o m t h e " p i tarea. F i n a l l y , conversations with DEQ" per sonnel revealed- th.atthe pit had been i m p r o p e r l y d i s turb ed with a s t i ck to s u p p o r tthe s a m p l e probe p r i o r to s a m p l i n g , and that thi s pro c edur ei s inconsi s tent EPA s a m p l i n g p r o t o c o l s .T h e correct S ( m ) migra t i on f o r t h e s i t e shou ld t h e r e f o r eb e 14.43, which i s below t h e E P A ' s minimum score o f 28.5 f o rp l a c e m e n t o f a s i te on the N P L . The Combus t i on s i t e t h e r e f o r es h ou ld not be p l a c e d on the NPL.

M r . R u s s e l l H . W y e r , Dir e c t o rL I S K O W & L E W I SPAGE 3

T h a n k you for your c o n s i d e r a t i o n o f these comments ,

Y o u r s very t r u l y ,

Robert E. H o l d e nR E H i l a mE n c l o s u r ecc: Mr. W i l l i a m B. D e v i l l e , A d m i n i s t r a t o rI n a c t i v e a n d A b a n d o n e d S i t e s Div i s i onLoui s iana Department o f Environmental Q u a l i t y

P o s t O f f i c e B o x 44307Baton Rouge, LA 70804Mr. Barry N a s hEnvironmental P r o t e c t i o n A g e n c y , Region V II n t e r f i r s t I I B u i l d i n g1201 Elm S t r e e tD a l l a s , T X 75270

A N A L Y S I S O F H A Z A R D R A N K I N G S Y S T E M SCOREC O M B U S T I O N , I N C . S I T E

L I V I N G S T O N P A R I S H , L O U I S I A N A

W . O . 185-01A u g u s t 5, 1986

l i c h a e l E . P i s a n i , P . T E T . _ " " <P r i n c i p a l:- - i l l i

P r e p a r e d by:E R M - S O U T H W E S T , I N C .

3501 N . C a u s e w a y B o u l e v a r dS u i t e 2 0 0M e t a i r i e , LA 70002

( 5 0 4 ) 831-67007u002

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

S e c t i o nI N T R O D U C T I O N1.1 Background1.2 P u r p o s e and S c o p eR E G U L A T O R Y A N A L Y S I S2 . 1 I n t r o d u c t i o n2 . 2 T h e H a z a r d R a n k i n g S y s t e m

A N A L Y S I S O F T H E C O M B U S T I O N , I N C . H R SM I G R A T I O N SCORE3 . 1 C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . H R S Score3 . 2 S c o r e A n a l y s i s3 .3 C o n c l u s i o n

3-13-13-13-2

A N A L Y S I S O F T H E A I R R O U T E S C O R E4 . 1 T h e A i r Route S c o r e4.2 Observed Relea s eB A S E S F O R C H A L L E N G E5 . 1 I m p r o p e r S a m p l i n g P r o c e d u r e s5 . 2 S o u r c e o f Rel ea s e N o t D e t e r m i n e d5 . 3 A n a l y t i c a l S e n s i t i v i t y5 .4 S i g n i f i c a n c e o f Data5 . 5 Other Data ' - • ' - • - • - • , .C O N C L U S I O N S A N D R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S ' " ^ - ^ P6.1 C o n c l u s i o n s 6 - - '" f" ric3,t2r, 1 one6.2 R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s £ " 7 s o c o i » j ! ! « i i < , i r f . L ^

A P P E N D I X A - DEQ S A M P A N S " R E P O R T - '•'C O M B U S T I O N , I N C . SITE

4-14-14-15-15-15-15-25-35-4

6-16-1

S U M M A R Y

E R M - S o u t h w e s t , I n c . w a s r e t a i n e d b y a g r o u p o f p o t e n t i a l l yr e s p o n s i b l e p a r t i e s t o conduct i n i t i a l e n g i n e e r i n g s t u d i e s o nt h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e . A s p a r t o f t h i s work, a n eva lua-t i o n o f t h e H a z a r d R a n k i n g S c o r e ( H R S ) f o r t h e s i t e w a s madeto d e t e r m i n e whe ther i t i s a p p r o p r i a t e to i n c l u d e the s i t e ont h e N a t i o n a l P r i o r i t i e s L i s t ( N P L ) . T h e e v a l u a t i o n showst h a t t h e A i r Route S c o r e component o f t h e H R S i s f l a w e d d u et o s a m p l i n g error s a n d q u e s t i o n a b l e a n a l y t i c a l d a t a . W h e nth e s e d a t a a r e d i s q u a l i f i e d , t h e H R S score f o r t h e s i t e d r o p sb e l o w t h e m i n i m u m score f o r N P L l i s t i n g . C o n s e q u e n t l y , t h eC o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e does n o t meet t h e m i n i m u m c r i t e r i a f o ri n c l u s i o n o n t h e N P L .

A N A L Y S I S O F H A Z A R D R A N K I N G S Y S T E M S C O R EC O M B U S T I O N , I N C . S I T E

L I V I N G S T O N P A R I S H , L O U I S I A N A

1 - INTRODUCTION1.1 B a c k g r o u n dO n J u n e 1 0 , 1986, t h e E n v i r o n m e n t a l P r o t e c t i o n A g e n c y ( E P A )p r o p o s e d in the F e d e r a l R e g i s t e r to add 45 wa s t e s i t e s to theN a t i o n a l P r i o r i t i e s L i s t ( 5 1 F R 2 1 0 9 9 ) . T h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c .s i t e w a s i n c l u d e d i n t h i s p r o p o s a l because i t s H a z a r d R a n k i n gS y s t e m ( H R S ) score e x c e ed ed t h e m i n i m u m r equ ir ed f o ri n c l u s i o n o n t h e N a t i o n a l P r i o r i t i e s L i s t ( N P L ) d u e t o a na l l e g e d "observed r e l ea s e " i n t o t h e air. The a i r c omponen tof the HRS score was based on s a m p l e s t a k e n d u r i n g an inves-t i g a t i o n b y t h e L o u i s i a n a D e p a r t m e n t o f E n v i r o n m e n t a l Q u a l i t y( D E Q ) o n J u n e 1 3 , 1985.1.2 P u r p o s e and S c o p eE R M - S o u t h w e s t , I n c . was r e t a i n e d by a g r o u p o f theP o t e n t i a l l y R e s p o n s i b l e P a r t i e s ( P R P ' s ) t o conduct i n i t i a le n g i n e e r i n g s t u d i e s o n t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e . A s p a r t o ft h i s work, an e v a l u a t i o n of the HRS score for the s i t e wasmade to d e t e r m i n e whether it is a p p r o p r i a t e to i n c l u d e .the.s i t e on the N P L . The: p u r p o s e ; 6f € h f s rep~6rt ; i s ..to pre s entthe r e s u l t s o f the -̂x -J^ i- "U ,

1-1 l - l

2 - R E G U L A T O R Y A N A L Y S I S2 . 1 I n t r o d u c t i o nS e c t i o n 1 0 5 ( 8 ) ( A ) o f t h e C o m p r e h e n s i v e E n v i r o n m e n t a lR e s p o n s e , C o m p e n s a t i o n a n d L i a b i l i t y A c t o f 1980 ( C E R C L A )r e q u i r e d th e d e v e l o p m e n t o f " . . . c r i t e r i a f or d e t e r m i n i n gp r i o r i t i e s among r e l e a s e s o r t h r e a t e n e d r e l e a s e s t h r o u g h o u tt h e U n i t e d S t a t e s f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f t a k i n g r e m e d i a l a c t i o na n d , t o t h e e x t e n t p r a c t i c a b l e , t a k i n g i n t o account t h ep o t e n t i a l u r g e n c y o f such a c t i o n , f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f t a k i n gremoval a c t i o n s . " T h i s l e g i s l a t i v e m a n d a t e r e s u l t e d i n t h ed e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e U n c o n t r o l l e d H a z a r d o u s W a s t e S i t e R a n k i n gS y s t e m ( 4 0 C F R 300, A p p e n d i x A ) , r e f e r r e d t o a s t h e H a z a r dR a n k i n g S y s t e m o r H R S . T h e H R S i s i n t e n d e d t o p r o v i d e ameans f o r a p p l y i n g u n i f o r m t e c h n i c a l j u d g e m e n t r e g a r d i n g t h ep o t e n t i a l h a z a r d s p r e s e n t e d b y a f a c i l i t y r e l a t i v e t o o t h e rf a c i l i t i e s f o r p u r p o s e s o f s e t t i n g p r i o r i t i e s r e l a t i v e t o t h eu s e o f C E R C L A f u n d s .The HRS score i s no t i n t e n d e d to p r o v i d e an a b s o l u t e i n d i c a -t i o n o f r i s k a s s o c i a t e d w i t h a s i t e . T h e H R S a l s o does n o ta d d r e s s t h e f e a s i b i l i t y , d e s i r a b i l i t y , o r d e g r e e o f c l e a n u prequ ir ed at a s i t e .2 . 2 T h e H a z a r d R a n k i n g S y s t e mT h e H R S a s s i g n s three scores t o a f a c i l i t y :

o T h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e r e f l e c t s t h ' e p o t e n t i a l " " f o rharm t o humans o r t h e " e n v i r o n m e n t ; f r o m m i g r a t i o n o f -a h a z a r d o u s s u b s t a n c e away "from the:~ " f a c i l i t y - • - by'rou t e s i n v o l v i n g ground w a t e r , " surface . , w a t e r ! o ' r "air. I t i s a c o m p o s i t e o f s e p a r a t e s cqre s ' ' " f o r " each,of the t h r e e r ou t e s . •••" ; "•••- '•.''••.iv-.• ^ea t e s .

o T h e F i r e / E x p l o s i o n S c o r e r e f l e c t s ' t h e p o t e n t i a l f o rharm f r o m s u b s t a n c e s tha t can e x p l o d e or "cause"f i r e s . "'••'••o T h e D i r e c t C o n t a c t S c o r e r e f l e c t s t h e p o t e n t i a l f o rharm f r o m d i r e c t c on ta c t w i t h h a z a r d o u s s u b s t a n c e sat the f a c i l i t y ( i . e . , no m i g r a t i o n need be

i n v o l v e d ) .O n l y t h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e i s c o n s i d e r e d in a d e c i s i o n t o l i s ta s i t e o n t h e N P L , t h e r e f o r e t h e F i r e / E x p l o s i o n a n d ' D i r e c t 'C o n t a c t S c o r e s a r e n o t f d i s c u s s e d here in. - 1 - . . . . . : . : . ; . £ : t « f : > : n ,

2-1

A s s t a t e d above, t h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e i s a c o m p o s i t e o f t h r e escores r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e d i f f e r e n t m i g r a t i o n r o u t e s : t h eground w a t e r route score, the s u r f a c e wa t e r rout e score andt h e a i r route score. C a l c u l a t i o n o f t h e i n d i v i d u a l r ou t escores r equ ir e s c o n s i d e r a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n about th e s i t e , andc o n s i d e r s such f a c t o r s a s the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f th em i g r a t i o n p a t h w a y , any c o n t a i n m e n t o f t h e m a t e r i a l s a t t h es i t e , t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f t h e w a s t e , a n d t h e t a r g e t s o fa n y a c t u a l o r p o t e n t i a l r e l e a s e . A f t e r c a l c u l a t i o n o f t h et h r e e c o m p o n e n t s , t h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e i s d e t e r m i n e d by t h ef o l l o w i n g f o r m u l a : _______________*_______M i g r a t i o n S c o r e = 1 ~ \ / ( S n w ) 2 + ( S _ J 2 + ( S ) 2

T773" Vwhere: S = Ground water route scoregw

S = S u r f a c e water route scoreS = Air route scorea

E P A ' s current p o l i c y i s t o p r o p o s e f o r i n c l u s i o n o n t h e N P Lany s i t e w i t h a M i g r a t i o n S c o r e o f a t l e a s t 28.50.

2-2

3 - A N A L Y S I S O F T H E C O M B U S T I O N , I N C .H R S M I G R A T I O N SCORE_____________

3 . 1 C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . H R S S c o r e sT h e i n d i v i d u a l route scores f o r t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t ewere a s f o l l o w s :

G r o u n d W a t e r Route S c o r e = 22.45S u r f a c e W a t e r Route S c o r e = 10.91A i r Rout e S c o r e = 5 5 . 3 8

U s i n g t h e f o r m u l a g i v e n i n S e c t i o n 2 . 2 o f t h i s r e p o r t , t h eM i g r a t i o n S c o r e i s c a l c u l a t e d to be 35.11.3 . 2 S c o r e A n a l y s i s

As shown above, the air rou t e score was the h i g h e s t of thet h r e e , and t h e r e f o r e has the g r e a t e s t i m p a c t on thec a l c u l a t i o n o f t h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e .T o i l l u s t r a t e , as sume that a i r rout e score f o r C o m b u s t i o n ,I n c . r e m a i n e d a t 5 5 . 3 8 , bu t tha t the ground wat er and s u r f a c ewater rou t e scores weire both" zero ( t h e l owe s t p o s s i b l e ,s core s , i n d i c a t i n g no m i g r a t i o n hazard..: v ia those - r o u t e s - ) .T h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e would th en-b e c a l c u l a t e d a s : • • • - • • •--- • • • " ' 1 . - - 3 :- , . -1 a sM i g r a t i o n S c o r e = 1 _ HT.JT \ 0a.-j.so3v* 55^382 = 32.01

1.73 -T h i s score is s t i l l h i g h enough ( i .e. > : : g r e a t e r than" 2 8 . 5 0 )f o r th e s i t e t o b e p r o p o s e d ' f o r : l i s t i n g on th e N P L . " " If ,~ "onthe o ther h a n d , the a ir route score w a s ' zero, a n d ' the groundwat er and s u r f a c e wa t e r rout e scores r emained at 22 .45 and10.91 r e s p e c t i v e l y , t h e M i g r a t i o n S c o r e would b e :M i g r a t i o n S c o r e = 1 2 2 . 4 5 2 + 10.912 + 02 = 14.43

1.73T h i s score i s b e l ow t h e c u t o f f l e v e l f o r N P L l i s t i n g o f28.50.

3-1

3 . 3 C o n c l u s i o nI f t h e H R S score f o r t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e i s t o b ec h a l l e n g e d , the c h a l l e n g e must be based on a f l a w in the airrou t e score. W h i l e f l a w s m a y e x i s t i n t h e o ther c omponen ts core s , r e d u c i n g those scores w i l l no t reduce t h e M i g r a t i o nS c o r e s u f f i c i e n t l y t o k e ep t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . S i t e f r o mb e i n g a d d e d t o t h e N P L .

3-2

4 - A N A L Y S I S O F T H E A I R R O U T E S C O R E4 . 1 T h e A i r Route S c o r eT h r e e f a c t o r s c o n t r i b u t e t o t h e a i r route score:

o Was there an "observed r e l ea s e " i n t o the air at thes i t e ?

o W h a t are the c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the wa s t e s at thes i t e ?o W h a t a r e t h e t a r g e t s ( i . e . , p o p u l a t i o n w i t h i n a

f o u r - m i l e r a d i u s , l o ca l l a n d use, e t c ) ?T h e most c r i t i c a l o f th e s e f a c t o r s , however, i s t h e f i r s t ,because if there is no "observed release" at the s i t e , thea ir rou t e score i s a u t o m a t i c a l l y zero, and a n a l y s i s o f theo th e r f a c t o r s l i s t e d above i s unnec e s sary.4.2 Observed R e l e a s e40 CFR 300 A p p e n d i x A s t a t e s tha t the " ... o n l y a c c e p t a b l ee v i d e n c e of r e l ea s e for the air route i s d a t a that showl e v e l s o f a c o n t a m i n a n t at or in the v i c i n i t y o f a f a c i l i t ytha t s i g n i f i c a n t l y exceed background l e v e l s , r e g a r d l e s s o ft h e f r e q u e n c y o f occurrence".On J u n e 13, 1 9 8 5 , the L o u i s i a n a D E Q • c o l l e c t e d a ir s a m p l e s a tt h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e . - ' D E Q d o c u m e n t a t i o n o f ' t h es a m p l i n g , i n c l u d i n g -a" map"1 "showing"1 the" ' s a m p l i n g 1 beat ions v v is-p r o v i d e d a s A p p e n d i x AV : " ; A" summary, o f" the" a n a l y t i c a l ^ r e s u l t s -are p r e s e n t e d in T a b l e 4-1 \ ^ D i b h i o r o b e n ' z e n e ^ - was d e t e c t e d ' - i nt w o d o w n w i n d s a m p l e s , b u t "Was" "hot d e t e c t e d " i n ' e i t h e r ' € h eu p w i n d s a m p l e s o r t h e f i e l d b l a n k s . A l l o f : t h e other- com-p o u n d s d e t e c t e d i n t h e d o w n w i n d s a m p l e s were a l s o d e t e c t e d - i nt h e u p w i n d s a m p l e a n d / o r t h e f i e l d b l a n k s . F r o m th e s e data",the HRS air route score w a s " c a l c u l a t e d based on an observedr e l e a s e o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e .

4-1 4.-1

IN J

T a b l e 4-1Combust ion, I n c . Air S a m p l e Results*

June 13, 1985Concentration in A i r , par t s per b i l l i o n

CompoundBenzeneTolueneTotal Xylene sEthylbenzeneTetrachloroe thylene1,1 ,2 ,2-Tetrachloro-ethane1.1.1-Tr ichloroethane1.1.2-Tr ichloroethaneTr ichloroethylenetrans - 1,3 -Dichloro-propylene . : - . -To'tai , . Dichlorobenzenes**. MX

Downwind1301ND<0.0050.093

NDNDND

i NDs ND

. .. ND— ___..-.-.h- ND

1302NDND0.0560.008<0.005NDNDND:::£:.:.: NDND

1303AND0.0150.0760.0100.0070.007ND

0.009NDND

1303BND0.010

0.0650.0060.0150.0150.023

ND0.005

ND

Upwind1304

NDND0.040NDNDNDNDNDNDND

1305NDND0.032NDNDND

0.034NDNDND

0.014 0.014 ND' f c . 1

ND

T o t a l NanogramsF i e l d Blanks

13112.2

ND11.81.87.57.7

ND9.12.4

ND

1312.3.41.2 (24 '

ND10.111.0

3.518.85.0 i1.5

ND ND

ND'"1* -Not detected at de tec t ion l imit of 0.005 parts per b i l l i on .-*- L Fr'pm West-Paine Laboratories, I n c . report to Louisiana Department o f Environmental Qual i ty e n t i t l e dAnalyses of Tenax and Carbon Tube s , June 28, 1985.^ * ' • O n l y compound not detected in upwind samples and not detected on f i e l d blanks.1 , 1 ; . : • • •

t r a > ' . : :p l r otot*.:.

N D « ' : > ;

...otii.\:\.£a in upWKV;

5 - B A S E S F O R C H A L L E N G E5 . 1 I m p r o p e r S a m p l i n g P r o c e d u r e sI n a J u l y 1 1 , 1986 t e l e p h o n e c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h t h e D E Qp e r s o n n e l _who c o n d u c t e d t h e a i r s a m p l i n g , d e t a i l s o f t h es a m p l i n g p r o c e d u r e were d i s c u s s e d . T h e s a m p l i n g p r o c e d u r eused by DEQ for the d o w n w i n d s a m p l e s was a s f o l l o w s :

o A s t i c k was d r i v e n in t o the b o t t o m of the i m p o u n d -ment ( t h r o u g h the l i q u i d and s l u d g e in thei m p o u n d m e n t ) and the i n t a k e p o r t o f the a ir sam-p l i n g d e v i c e w a s a t t a c h e d t o t h e s t i c k .o The i n t a k e p o r t was p o s i t i o n e d as c l o s e as p o s s i b l et o t h e s u r f a c e o f t h e l i q u i d in th e i m p o u n d m e n t .o As soon as the air i n t a k e was in p o s i t i o n , the airp u m p was s t a r t e d t o b e g i n d r a w i n g a ir t h r o u g h th e

s a m p l e r .T h i s p r o c e d u r e i s i n d i r e c t c o n f l i c t w i t h 4 0 C F R 3 0 0 A p p e n d i xA , S e c t i o n 5 . 1 i n s t r u c t i o n s f o r a i r s a m p l i n g , which s t a t e"Data based o n t r a n s i t o r y c o n d i t i o n s d u e t o f a c i l i t y d i s t u r -bance by i n v e s t i g a t i v e p e r s o n n e l are not a c c e p t a b l e . "P l a c e m e n t o f the s t i c k in the l i q u i d o f the i m p o u n d m e n t anda t t a c h m e n t o f th e i n s t r u m e n t i n t a k e por t t o th e s t i c k arec e r t a i n t o have d i s t u r b e d t h e l i q u i d s u r f a c e o f t h ei m p o u n d m e n t and th e s l u d g e a t th e b o t t o m . A l t h o u g h u n i n t e n -t i o n a l , t h i s d i s t u r b a n c e o f t h e l i q u i d a n d s l u d g e c o u p l e dw i t h the l o c a t i o n o f the' s a m p l e r i n t a k e "a s c l j D s e a sp o s s i b l e " to the l i q u i d s u r f a c e l e a v e s ho : doubt : tha t-" the-^s a m p l e r e s u l t s o b t a i n e d ' r were a t 1 • l e a s t - ' p a r t i a l l y ' d u e 1 t o 'v o l a t i l i z a t i o n o f hydrocarbons ' c a u s e d b y a d i s t u r b a n c e - o f t h es u r f a c e o f t h e i m p o u n d m e n t ; • • • & o ' m e a s u r e ' s ^ were" t a k e f T to~pre*-=-vent t h i s occurrence s ' u c h V s " w a i t i n g f o r t h e i m p o u n d m e n t "s u r f a c e to become c a l m b e f o r e s t a r t i n g the s a m p l e pump"."-:-~"" ' - '•' ' '•'5 .2 S o u r c e o f Re l ea s e Not D e t e r m i n e d :

N u m e r o u s ana ly s e s have been p e r f o r m e d on m a t e r i a l s p r e s e n t att h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e . S a m p l e s o f s u r f a c e w a t e r , s o i l sa n d s l u d g e s f r o m t h e s i t e have been e x t e n s i v e l y a n a l y z e d f o ro r g a n i c s , and th e r e s u l t s r e p o r t e d in th e E a r t h T e c h n o l o g yC o r p o r a t i o n ' s March 1985 r e p o r t t o D E Q e n t i t l e d S i t e -I n s p e c t i o n F o l l o w u p Repor t f o r t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . S i t eDenham S p r i n g s , L o u i s i a n a * • -f^ S a m p l . e s ^ w e r e ' 1- c o l l e c t e d ^ inOctober 1983 and in J a n u a r y , F e b r u a r y , ' and March 6 f - - 1 9 8 5 . _

5-1

A l t h o u g h numerous o r g a n i c c o m p o u n d s were p r e s e n t in th e sam-p l e s , d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e was no t d e t e c t e d in any o f th e w a t e r ,s o i l , or s l u d g e s a m p l e s . F u t h e r m o r e , no c h l o r i n a t e d aroma-t i c s w h a t s o e v e r were d e t e c t e d in the soil near where the airs a m p l e s were c a u g h t , nor in the l i q u i d in the i m p o u n d m e n t .I f t h e r e i s n o source o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e i n t h e m a t e r i a l s a tthe s i t e , th e d e t e c t i o n o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e in the a ir i sa n o m a l o u s . T h i s e v i d e n c e shows that d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e w a s n o t ,i n f a c t , r e l e a s e d f r o m t h e s i t e , a n d that i t s d e t e c t i o n w a sa n a n a l y t i c a l a r t i f a c t .5 . 3 A n a l y t i c a l S e n s i t i v i t yG i v e n t h a t t h e d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e in th e d o w n w i n d s a m p l e wa sd e t e c t e d a t a level very near the a n a l y t i c a l d e t e c t i o n l i m i t ,th e p o s s i b i l i t y e x i s t s that th e a ir m i g r a t i o n score may havebeen based on a f a l s e p o s i t i v e in a d d i t i o n to b e i n g based oni m p r o p e r s a m p l i n g t e chnique. I n g e n e r a l , a n a l y t i c a l r e s u l t sa t l e v e l s l e s s than 3-5 t i m e s the d e t e c t i o n l i m i t s h o u l d bev i ewed as s u s p e c t . D i c h l o r o b e n z e n e was d e t e c t e d in o n l y twoof the f o u r d o w n w i n d s a m p l e s , and then at a c o n c e n t r a t i o n ofo n l y 0.014 p a r t s p e r b i l l i o n ( p p b ) , which i s l e s s than thre et i m e s the d e t e c t i o n l i m i t o f 0.005 p p b . As ev idence o f theu n r e l i a b i l i t y o f d a t a a t such l o w l e v e l s , c o n s i d e r t h e s eo th er a n o m a l i e s i n t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . , a i r q u a l i t y d a t a :o 1 , 1 , 1 - T r i c h l o r o e t h a n e was d e t e c t e d at 0.034 ppb u p w i n d( ~7x the d e t e c t i o n l i m i t ) , but was d e t e c t e d in only

one out of f o u r d o w n w i n d s a m p l e s , and at a much .lowerl e v e l downwind ( l e s s than 5 x t h e d e t e c t i o n l i m i t " ) .o 1 , 1 , 2 , 2 — T e T r a c h l o r b e t h a n e ^and l,"i", Z- ~-"tr i c h l o r o e t h a n e .were d e t e c t e d in h i g h e r c o n c e n t r a t i o n s ' i n " ' t h eb l a n k s than i n e i t h e r ' t h e - u p w i n d 6 r ! d d w h w i h d " s ' a m p ' l ' e V . 7

o Other o rgan i c c o m p o u n d s a p p e a r e d in a n a l y s e s o f . t h e a i rs a m p l e s , a s shown in T a b l e 4- l i T h e s e d a t a - w e r e a l s o a tlow m u l t i p l e s of the d e t e c t i o n l i m i t . Due ' to thed e t e c t i o n o f t h e s e same c o m p o u n d s in th e u p w i n d a n d / o rf i e l d b l a n k s a m p l e s , however, E P A a p p a r e n t l y ( a n dc o r r e c t l y ) e i t h e r a t t r i b u t e d the se r e s u l t s t o ba ckgroundor d e t e r m i n e d that the d a t a did not i n d i c a t e an observedre l ea s e .

T h e s e e x a m p l e s i l l u s t r a t e that a t t h e very l o w r e p o r t e dl e v e l s o f c o n t a m i n a n t s i n t h e s e - s a m p l e s , w i d e l y v a r i a b l e a n di n c o n s i s t e n t r e s u l t s a t $ ~n6t 'only p o s s i b l e , : : "but ' a r e - l i k e l y . - • ' •

5-2

W h i l e these l i m i t e d d a t a p r o v i d e n o d i r e c t e v i d e n c e that t h ed i c h l o r o b e n z e n e w a s a f a l s e p o s i t i v e , that p o s s i b i l i t y i sc e r t a i n l y w i t h i n t h e v a r i a b i l i t y o f t h e d a t a r e p o r t e d , a n dmust be c o n s i d e r e d .5 . 4 S i g n i f i c a n c e o f DataEven i f th e mea sur ement o f 0.014 ppb o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e wasd e t e r m i n e d to be a c c u r a t e , the a n a l y s e s are i r r e l e v a n t int e r m s o f a s s e s s i n g any hazard po s ed by th e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c .s i t e . The s a m p l e that p r o d u c e d th e 0.014 ppb r e a d i n g wa sc o l l e c t e d f r o m a p o i n t l e s s than an inch above the s u r f a c e o ft h e l i q u i d i m p o u n d m e n t . T h i s l o c a t i o n i s n o t r e p r e s e n t a t i v eo f a n y l o c a t i o n l i k e l y t o pose a p o s s i b l e e x p o s u r e hazard .F u r t h e r m o r e , c o n c e n t r a t i o n s o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e a t anyl o c a t i o n that c o u l d pose a p o t e n t i a l e x p o s u r e h a z a r d , evenw i t h i n a f e w f e e t o f t h e i m p o u n d m e n t , wou ld b e u n d e t e c t a b l ed u e t o n a t u r a l d i s p e r s i o n . C o n s e q u e n t l y , i t i s v i r t u a l l yi m p o s s i b l e that d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e would be d e t e c t e d in the airat any l o c a t i o n that would r e a s o n a b l y be e x p e c t e d to p r e s e n tan e x p o s u r e h a z a r d .A s f u r t h e r e v i d e n c e that t h e hazard a s s o c i a t e d w i t hd i c h l o r o b e n z e n e e m i s s i o n s f r o m t h e s i t e i s t r u l y n e g l i g i b l e ,t h e book l e t T h r e s h o l d L i m i t V a l u e s a n d B i o l o g i c a l E x p o s u r eI n d i c e s f o r 1985-1986 b y t h e A m e r i c a n C o n f e r e n c e o f Govern-m e n t a l I n d u s t r i a l H y g i e n i s t s s p e c i f i e s a 8 - h o u r / d a y , 4 0 -h o u r / w e e k a c c e p t a b l e t h r e s h o l d l i m i t va lue o f 50 t o 75 p a r t sp e r m i l l i o n " i n a i r f o r d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e ( d e p e n d i n g o n t h ei s o m e r ) . The c o n c e n t r a t i o n measured at l e s s than an inchf r o m t h e s u r f a c e o f f t h e i m p o u n d m e n t w a s 0.014' v p a r t ' s ~ - p e rb i l l i o n , or l e s s thari_^orie-mi 11 ionth -of '• the a c c e p t a b l e s a f e "human e x p o s u r e l i m i t . ; - ; • - • = " • • • --•-••;•.>•• •-- " : ^ i t .In s ummary, th e d i c h l c - r o b e n z e n e r e a d i n g wa s taken a t a 1 lota=-jt i o n l i k e l y t o p r o d u c e a maximum c o n c e n t r a t i o n s - • : T h e s a f el e v e l of e x p o s u r e f or-• liuma-ris i n i t h e : : workplace : - : r i - s ; " s t i l-1, :

however , over a m i l l i o n t i m e s h i g h e r than : t h i s ' r e a d i n g , : . ' • ' • • I t -i s c l e a r , t h e n , tha t t h e hazard f r o m d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e emis-s i ons f r o m t h e s i t e i s t r u l y n e g l i g i b l e . I n c l u s i o n o f t h eC o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e on th e NPL based on e m i s s i o n s o fd i c h l o r o b e n z e n e to the air .(.as EPA has p r o p o s e d ) i sc o m p l e t e l y i l l o g i c a l , because these e m i s s i o n s ( i f , i n d e e d ,th ey o c c u r r e d ) pose a b s o l u t e l y no thr ea t to human h e a l t h orth e e n v i r o n m e n t .

5-3

5.5 Other DataAs a f u r t h e r check on the d a t a and the i n t e r p r e t a t i o np r o v i d e d i n t h i s r e p o r t , E R M - S o u t h w e s t sought o th er a v a i l a b l ed a t a o n a i r e m i s s i o n s f r o m t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e ,i n c l u d i n g d a t a no t c o n t a i n e d in th e d o c k e t f o r t h e currentN P L u p d a t e - p r o p o s a l . A J u l y 1 6 , 1 9 8 6 E P A memorandum ( 1 )t r a n s m i t t e d a n a l y t i c a l d a t a f o r s a m p l e s c o l l e c t e d N o v e m b e r 6 -7, 1985 by the EPA E n v i r o n m e n t a l R e s p o n s e T e a m . No d i c h l o r o -benzene w a s d e t e c t e d i n the s e s a m p l e s . A l t h o u g h d a t a f o rvery l ow l e v e l s o f some o r g a n i c s were p r o v i d e d , t h ea c c o m p a n y i n g r e p o r t s d o c u m e n t e d numerous a n a l y t i c a l a n ds a m p l i n g p r o b l e m s , a n d s i g n i f i c a n t d e v i a t i o n s f r o m a c c e p t e da n a l y t i c a l p r o t o c o l s . E P A ' s c o n t r a c t o r even recommended thatthe a n a l y t i c a l l a b o r a t o r y no l o n g e r be used for work o f t h i st y p e . Due to th e s e c i r c u m s t a n c e s , t h e s e d a t a were note v a l u a t e d f u r t h e r .

( 1 ) S u b j e c t : A n a l y t i c a l D a t a f o r A i r S a m p l e s a t t h eC o m b u s t i o n , I n c .

5-4

6 - C O N C L U S I O N S A N D R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S6.1 C o n c l u s i o n sT h e H a z a r d R a n k i n g S c o r e f o r t h e C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e i sin c orr e c t due t o f l a w s in th e d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f th e a i r rou t escore, as o u t l i n e d below.

1. The s a m p l i n g p r o c e d u r e used to d e t e c t the "observedre l ea s e" o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e was f l a w e d , because th ea l l e g e d e m i s s i o n w a s a f f e c t e d b y t h e i n v e s t i g a t o r ' sd i s t u r b a n c e o f t h e w a s t e i n c o n f l i c t w i t h 4 0 C F R300, A p p e n d i x A .

2. T h e r e i s no e v i d e n c e of the p r e s e n c e of d i c h l o r o -benzene in s o i l , s l u d g e , or water at the s i t e .3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

T h e very l o w l e v e l o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e d e t e c t e d i nt h e a i r ( l e s s than 3 x t h e d e t e c t i o n l i m i t ) makest h e v a l i d i t y o f t h e d a t a h i g h l y q u e s t i o n a b l e .No d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e was d e t e c t e d in thed o w n w i n d s a m p l e s .

o ther

The e v i d e n c e in i t e m s 2, 3 and 4 above p o i n t ss t r o n g l y t o w a r d a c o n c l u s i o n that t h e d e t e c t i o n o fd i c h l o r o b e n z e n e in the a ir was a " f a l s e p o s i t i v e " ,and tha t no r e l e a s e o f d i c h l o r o b e n z e n e a c t u a l l yo c curr ed . " ""*»T h e r e p o r t e d l e v e l : o f d f c t i l o ' C o b e n z f e r i e - ' - l n t h e a i r a sriot " s i g n i f i c a n t " in tha t th e c d n c ' e n t r ~ a t f - o n (-'det&£^mined a t t h e h o t t e s t s p o t ) 1 i s 1 ' i h i l i ' i b n "times, - l e s sthan a c c e p t e d , s a f e human; exposure" l e v e l ' s " . "•' . '••"' . '- .- ::vW i t h o u t t h i s ob s erved r e l e a s e , t h e - A i r -Route • ' ' " S c o r e -d r o p s t o zero, and th e . .maximum M i g r a t i o n : S c o r ebecomes 14.43, which doe s not meet the m i n i m u mc r i t e r i a f o r N P L l i s t i n g .

6.2 R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s . _1. S u b m i t t h i s r epor t to EPA p r i o r to A u g u s t 11, 1986

and request that the C o m b u s t i o n , I n c . s i t e beremoved f r o m the p r o p o s e d NPL based on no t s c o r i n g28.50 p o i n t s or g r e a t e r on the H a z a r d o u s R a n k i n gS y s t e m . - ? y - ' : e m .

6-1

A P P E N D I X AD E Q S A M P L I N G REPORT

C O M B U S T I O N , I N C . S I T E

P A T R I C I A L . N O R T O NS l i C R C T A R YJ O H N K O U R YI A S S I S T A N T S I l C R I i T A R Y

I N T E R O F F I C EO F F I C E O F S O U D A N D H

' ' S IJ u l y 1 7 , 1985

r \I ' 5 0

M E M O R A N D U M .T O : F i l eF R O M : H a r o l d E t h r i d g e , S u r v e i l l a n c eR E : C o m b u s t i o n , I n c .

On J u n e 13, 1985 Hyland Lee and m y s e l f went to C o m b u s t i o n ,I n c . t o take a i r s a m p l e s . W e took s a m p l e s f o r t w o hours. S a m p l e ?A 0 4 8 5 0 6 1 3 0 1 . A 0 4 8 5 0 6 1 3 0 2 , A048B061303A and A0485061303B were thed o v r t - w i n d s a m p l e s . S a m p l e s A0485061304 and A 0 4 8 S 0 6 1 3 0 5 were th eu p - w i n d s a m p l e s a n d A048506131 a n d A0485061312 were t h e f i e l db l a n k s . T h e s a m p l e s were s u b m i t t e d t o W e s t - P a i n e L a b o r a t o r i e sf o r a n a l y s i s .H F E / b h h

* H A K ' r > o v i r n S I T E S D I V I S I O N

O f f K E l ! T A N K L O C A T I O N S

D R A I H A Q ? D f T C H