SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE_1988-1991

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M E M O R A N D U• CALIFORNIA REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD • CENTRAL VALLEY REGION 3443 Routier Road, Suite A Phone: (916) 361-5600 Sacramento, California 95827-3098 ATSS: 8-495-5600 TO: Technical Staff FROM: Jon B. Marshack Involved in CERCLA Cleanups Senior Environmental Specialist Environmental/Technical Support DATE: 17 May 1991 SIGNATURE: SUBJECT: APPLICABLE OR RELEVANT AND APPROPRIATE REQUIREMENTS (ARARs)AND TO-BE-CONSIDERED MATERIALS (TBCs) UNDER FEDERAL SUPERFIIND (CERCLA) Remedial actions at CERCLA sites identified in the National Contingency Plan (NCP) are expected to attain "applicable or relevant and appropriate requirements" (ARARs), as defined in §121(d) of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA). As stated in EPA's CERCLA Compliance with Other Laws Manual ', "CERCLA §121 requires selection of a remedial action that is protective of human health and the environment. EPA's approach to determining protectiveness involves risk assessment, considering both ARARs and to-be-considered material (TBCs)." According to EPA, applicable requirements are those cleanup standards, standards of control, and other substantive environmental protection requirements, criteria, or limitations promulgated under federal or state law that specifically address a hazardous substance, pollutant, contaminant, remedial action, location, or other circumstance at a CERCLA site. Relevant and appropriate requirements are those same standards mentioned above that, while not "applicable" at the CERCLA site, "address problems or situations sufficiently similar to those encountered at the CERCLA site that their use is well suited to the particular site." EPA has divided ARARs into three categories to facilitate their identification: • Chemical-specific ARARs are usually health-or risk-based numerical values or methodologies used to determine acceptable concentrations of chemicals that may be found in or discharged to the environment, e.g., MCLs or other water quality criteria that establish safe levels in drinking water. • Location-specific ARARs restrict actions or contaminant concentrations in certain environmentally sensitive areas. Examples of areas regulated under various federal and state laws include floodplain, wetlands, and locations where endangered species or historically significant cultural resources are present. • Action-specific ARARs are usually technology-or activity-based requirements or limitation on action or conditions involving specific substances. U. S.Environmental Protection Agency,Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, "CERCLA Compliance with Other Laws Manual",September 1989.