Lodging of a Consent Decree Pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Lodging of a Consent Decree Pursuant to the Comprehensive

Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Notice is hereby given that a proposed consent decree in United

States v. Tucson Airport Authority, et al., Civil No. CIV-99-313-TUC-

WDB, was lodged on June 17, 1999, with the United States District Court

for the District of Arizona (``Airport Property Decree''). The proposed

Airport Property Decree would resolve claims under Sections 106 and 107

of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and

Liability Act of 1980, 42 U.S.C. 9607, 9607, as amended, and Section

7003 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 42 U.S.C. 6973,

brought against defendants Tucson Airport Authority, the City of

Tucson, General Dynamics Corporation and McDonnell Douglas Corporation

(collectively ``Defendants''), to compel performance of response

actions and to recover response costs incurred and to be incurred by

the Environmental Protection Agency in connection with the release and

threatened release of hazardous substances at a portion of the Tucson

International Airport Area Superfund Site known as the Airport

Property.

The proposed Airport Property Decree would resolve the liability of

the Defendants with respect to the Airport Property. The proposed

Airport Property Decree would release claims against the Defendants for

performance of the remedy selected in the Record of Decision entitled

``Tucson International Airport Area Superfund Site, Tucson, Arizona,

Airport Property Soils and Shallow Groundwater Zone, Burr-Brown

Property Soils, Former West-Cap Property Soils'' signed by the

Environmental Protection Agency on September 30, 1997. The proposed

Airport Property Decree would also release claims for response costs

incurred and to be incurred by the Environmental Protection Agency in

responding to releases and threatened releases of hazardous substances

at and from the Airport Property. To resolve these claims, the

Defendants collectively would perform the remedy selected in the 1997

ROD, would pay $1,719,771.23 to the Hazardous Substances Superfund to

reimburse the United States for Past Response Costs, and would

reimburse the United States for all Interim and Future Response Costs.

The proposed Airport Property Decree includes a covenant not to sue

by the United States under Sections 106 and 107 of the Comprehensive

Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, 42

U.S.C. 9606 and 9607, and under Section 7003 of the Resource

Conservation and Recovery Act (``RCRA''), 42 U.S.C. 6973.

The United States also lodged on June 17, 1999, a proposed

modification to a consent decree entered on June 5, 1991, in United

States v. Tucson Airport Authority, et al., D. Ariz., Civ. No. 90-587-

TUC-RMB (``TARP Decree''). In return for a single, unallocated payment

of $35 million to Tucson Airport

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Authority, the United States Department of the Air Force would receive

a covenant not to take administrative action from the United States

Environmental Protection Agency under the proposed Airport Property

Decree, and would effect Final Settlement under the TARP Decree. The

proposed modification to the TARP Decree is lodged with the Court in

order to allow the public to evaluate the Environmental Protection

Agency's covenant not to take administrative action against the

Department of the Air Force under the proposed Airport Property Decree.

The Department of Justice will receive, for a period of thirty (30)

days from the date of this publication, comments relating to the

proposed Airport Property Decree. Commenters may request an opportunity

for a public meeting in the affected area, in accordance with Section

7003(d) of RCRA, 42 U.S.C. 6973(d). Comments should be addressed to the

Assistant Attorney General for the Environmental and Natural Resources

Division, Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20530, and should refer

to United States v. Tucson Airport Authority, et al., D. Ariz, Civil

No. CIV-99-313-TUC-WDB, DOJ Ref. #90-11-3-369/2.

The Airport Property Decree and the modification to the TARP Decree

may be examined at the office of the United States Attorney, District

of Arizona, 110 S. Church Avenue, Suite 8310, Tucson, Arizona 85701;

the Region 9 Office of the Environmental Protection Agency, 75

Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, California 94105; and at the Consent

Decree Library, 1120 G Street, NW, 3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20005,

(202) 624-0892. A copy of the proposed Airport Property Decree and

modification to the TARP Decree may be obtained in person or by mail

from the Consent Decree Library, 1120 G Street, NW, 3rd Floor,

Washington, DC 20005. In requesting copies please refer to the

referenced case and enclose a check in the amount of $80.25 for the

Airport Property Decree and $8.25 for the modification to the TARP

Decree (25 cents per page reproduction costs), payable to the Consent

Decree Library.

Joel Gross,

Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environmental and Natural

Resources Division.

[FR Doc. 99-16021 Filed 6-22-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410-15-M