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I I I Council Meeting Minutes July 9, 1991 Page 3 Council Business. continued Council Business In 1990, EPA identified a number of potentially responsible parties for the contamination in the clean-up, and ordered them to organize a Potentially Oak Grove Landfill Responsible Party (PRP) group to determine the least costly remedy. A PRP is a group of parties apparently responsible for the condition and are jointly and severally liable for the cleanup. A PRP member is liable unless they can prove their innocence. The PRP group hired Donahue Engineering to design a remedy and began building the PRP group. In the meantime, EPA designed a cleanup remedy and approached companies who also may have been responsible. EPA prefers to negotiate with a PRP group because it minimizes legal and investigative costs. EPA will only consider a settlement from a PRP group. EPA is requiring that the consent decree to be entered into by the individual PRPs by July 22, 1991. In March, New Brighton was given notice of its PRP status and instructed to work only through the PRP group. Current and former City employees were interviewed and none recalled transporting to the landfill, and City records do not show such transactions. EPA asserts to have information implicating New Brighton, but will not release the data until the trial. A document was released which Joseph Egan lists parties who used the landfill. EPA has withheld possession of 10,000 weigh tickets dated 1967 to 1976, but it now appears this data will be made accessible to PRPs. One very major point is that New Brighton never had municipal collection. There were occasional loads of storm debris, but based on City records no City trucks delivered to the landfill. Prior to 1970, City practice was to haul all waste to two landfills operated within the City. The PRP group appointed an Allocation Committee to review individual PRPs which assigned each PRP to one of four tiers to determine liability. Direct shipments, use of certain haulers. volume of hazardous substances generated, and volume of other waste generated were the liability factors used. All PRPs were placed at Tier 1 ($96.000), unless evidence demonstrates assignment to a lower tier. New Brighton is assigned to Tier 3 ($48,000) and will make an appeal to Tier 4 at the July 16 hearing. New Brighton is unaware of any direct shipments, however, the City used three haulers listed by EPA. Identified substances used by the City were: used oil, oil filters, cutting oil. solvents. and paint/painting waste. The City documented the use of substances and has recycled since 1974. Prior to 1974, the City took the substances to Joe's Service and the Anoka Co-op. City records only go back to 1980, but employee affidavits were taken regarding volume of waste generated and dumpster size.