Members present:  Bill Betters, Susan Chapnick, Chris Davis, Steve Dodge, Wendy Heiger-Bernays, Jeff Porter, and Janine Commerford.  Forty-four people signed the sign-in sheet.

Opening Remarks - Janine Commerford welcomed the group.  Her opening remarks included the following:

• George Gardner was introduced as the new Deputy Director for Cost Recovery and Fee Revenue
• Supplemental MCP regulations should be promulgated by the end of the summer; the streamlined Technical Assistance Grant regulations are on a faster track  
• RCRA Corrective Action regulations package is at EOEEA; may be promulgated in June
• Safe Neighborhoods Initiative involves joint inspections by MassDEP and Fire Services of small to mid-size chemical facilities to identify safety violations (post-Danversport)

Download audio of Opening Remarks:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepMay242007AdvisoryCommitteeMeeting-Introductionjanine
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Asbestos in Soil - Paul Locke stated that no one provided oral testimony at any of the five hearings.  The schedule: written comments must be submitted by June 1; final regulations published by August 31; training through the fall; effective date around January 2008.  Waste Site Cleanup staff is working with counterparts in the Bureau of Waste Prevention to identify landfills within Massachusetts that will accept asbestos-containing material.

Download audio of Asbestos in Soil update:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepBwscAdvisoryCommitteeMeetingMay242007-Asbestos-in-soilUpdate
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Indoor Air Workgroup  - Rafael McDonald indicated that the workgroup's purpose is to review recent information on typical residential indoor air concentrations, since the numbers now in effect are outdated. No independent data sets were submitted but the workgroup did identify 88 indoor air studies.  These 88 studies were whittled to fewer than 10 and prioritized based on criteria established by the workgroup.  A summary of these findings will be placed on MassDEP's website.

MassDEP's position is that the "typical residential indoor air concentrations" identified as part of this project should not be used the same way as "background" levels in the MCP, due to the wide variability in the datasets. Pending more detailed DEP guidance, LSPs may use site-specific information and/or review available literature to determine what number to use as background (if any) in the risk assessment short form.

Download audio Indoor Air Workgroup update:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepWasteSiteCleanupAdvisoryCommitteeMay242007-IndoorAir
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Heating Oil Insurance Legislation - Chris Davis provided the following statistics:  between 340 and 400 residential home heating oil spills/leaks occur each year (often from leaking lines encased in cement basements).  The average cost to clean up these events is $50K; if groundwater is involved the cost rises to $250K - $300K. 

Seven years ago, as a result of a discussion on this topic at an Advisory Committee meeting, a number of stakeholders drafted legislation to address homeowner cleanup concerns (homeowners insurance typically does not cover these events except when groundwater is affected, and supplemental insurance is rarely available).  The bill has passed the Senate twice but the House has yet to act on it.  It features protective retrofits costing up to $200 and the ability to clean up leaks through requiring insurance companies to offer homeowners insurance coverage for these events.

Issues under discussion include what entity would be most effective in inspecting the required retrofits, whether retrofits should be required for all systems by a date certain or based on ownership turnover, and whether underground systems should be eliminated from the bill.

A recommendation was made that the stakeholder group be broadened to include health boards.  To better understand the magnitude of the problem, the Release Notification Form will eventually include a box for homeowners to check.  In the meantime, LSPs should remember that fees are reduced for homeowners who identify themselves as such by submitting a Homeowner Certification Form.

Download presentation material:

PDF 12 KB | MS Word 31 KB

Download audio of heating oil legislation discussion:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepAdvisoryCommittee-HeatingOilInsuranceBill-May2007
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Survey of Costs for Homeowner Heating Fuel Releases - Wes Stimpson discussed the survey (using Survey Monkey) that the LSPA plans to email to its LSP members this week.  The goal is to update the range of costs for homeowners to clean up spills/leaks since the last survey was conducted in 2002.  Participants are asked to submit two entries: the lowest and the highest cleanup costs.  A number of suggestions were made to include additional information about the case and the LSP.  MassDEP will work with the LSPA to finalize the content of the survey.

Download audio of Survey of Costs for Homeowner Heating Fuel Releases discussion:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepWasteSiteCleanupAdvisoryCommitteeMeeting-May242007-
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Oil Spill Act - Rich Packard, on a 6-month detail to work with Janine on this project, provided the history that resulted in passage of the act.  In 2003, a Bouchard Barge carrying 4 million gallons of #6 oil struck a ledge in Buzzards Bay as it was being towed.  The resulting spill closed 178 acres of shellfishing area and killed 480 birds.  A commission established by Governor Romney developed comprehensive legislation to control/restrict barges and tugboats, which was enacted as the Oil Spill Act of 2004. The statute:

• Created a trust fund (now containing ~$3M) to improve and enhance spill response and established an Advisory Committee (next meeting is on June 19)
• Appointed MassDEP to designate areas of special interest
• Enhanced penalties
• Mandated review of the Buzzards Bay Transit System

A federal court recently struck down several provisions it considered to be pre-empted by federal jurisdiction.  The Commonwealth is appealing the decision.

Download Oil Spill Act presentation material:

PDF 1.6 MB | MS Powerpoint 704 KB

Download audio of Oil Spill Act discussion:

 http://www.archive.org/details/Massdep-bwscacMeeting-May242007-OilSpillActpackard
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Geographic Response Plan - Elise DeCola of NUKA has been contracted by MassDEP to produce map-based plans that indicate where sensitive areas are so first responders have valuable information to help them prioritize their activity.  Plans for Buzzards Bay exist; the next target area is Cape Cod and the Islands.  Because consensus is needed for the plans to succeed, a broad-based group of government and stakeholders has been invited to meet on June 26 to help define and identify the Cape Cod and the Islands areas that should be featured in the plans.

Download GRP presentation material:

PDF 875 KB | MS Powerpoint 1 MB

Download audio of Geographic Response Plan discussion:

www.archive.org/details/MassdepAdvisoryCommittee-GeographicResponsePlan-May2007 
(mp3 audio file and other formats)

Next Meeting - The next Waste Site Cleanup Advisory Committee meeting will be held on Thursday, July 26 at 9:30 a.m. (This meeting was subsequently cancelled).

Handouts/Other information

Massachusetts Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act

PDF 1.6 MB | MS Powerpoint 704 KB

Geographic Response Plans (GRP) for the Cape & Islands

PDF 875 KB | MS Powerpoint 1 MB

An Act to Facilitate Homeowners Remediating Oil Spills

PDF 12 KB | MS Word 31 KB