Introduction to the 2021 Streamlined Model RD/RA Consent Decree and Statement of Work
Sponsored by: Office of Site Remediation Enforcement Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
On August 31, 2021 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued an updated version of its Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly known as Superfund) model remedial design/remedial action (RD/RA) consent decree (CD) and accompanying statement of work (SOW). These documents serve as the basis for negotiating cleanup work agreements with potentially responsible parties at Superfund sites.
On October 12 presenters will provide an overview of the updated model documents, an explanation of the key revisions including some enhanced community involvement provisions, and a demonstration of new tools that will allow drafting attorneys to easily modify the consent decree for particular situations (e.g., operable unit v. site wide CD). Superfund practitioners, community groups, and other interested stakeholders will gain important insight into the development of these new models and the impact on the negotiation process.
The effort to streamline the model RD/RA CD is the result of a review by a national workgroup comprised of EPA and DOJ attorneys who believed that streamlining the model RD/RA CD by improving clarity and reducing redundancy would result in a quicker negotiation process for CERCLA cleanup settlements and faster cleanup starts. In addition, consistent with Administrator Regan's prioritization of EPA's commitment to the protection of environmental justice communities disproportionately impacted by pollution, the workgroup developed enhanced community involvement provisions for the revised SOW to advance this commitment.
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Presenters:
Kenneth W. Patterson, Director of the Regional Support Division (RSD) in the Office of Site Remediation Enforcement (OSRE)
Ken Patterson is the Director of the Regional Support Division (RSD) in the Office of Site Remediation Enforcement (OSRE). OSRE is responsible for developing and implementing national enforcement policy for: the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or "Superfund"); the corrective action provisions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); and, the remediation provisions of the Oil Pollution Act. He has held management positions in both RSD as well as OSRE's Policy and Program Evaluation Division and has served as both the Acting Deputy Office Director of OSRE and of EPA's Federal Facilities Enforcement Office for extended periods.
Before joining EPA in 1988, Ken was an administrative law judge in North Carolina's Office of Administrative Hearings, presiding over environmental matters and other administrative proceedings. Prior to that, he spent four years as an assistant district attorney in northeastern North Carolina. He received his Bachelor of Arts and law degrees from Wake Forest University, and is a member of the North Carolina and District of Columbia Bars.
Mark Gallagher, U.S. Department of Justice (mark.gallagher@usdoj.gov)
Mark Gallagher has been a trial lawyer in the U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Environmental Enforcement Division since 1990. He handles and oversees a variety of CERCLA, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and RCRA matters. He is DOJ’s coordinator of changes to, and primary contact regarding, the model RD/RA consent decree. He is a co-author of the RD/RA CD. He also is a co-author of the model Statement of Work which accompanies the model RD/RA consent decree. Mark has a JD from Georgetown University Law School (1985) and a BS in business from Georgetown University (1980)
Tina Skaar, Office of Site Remediation Enforcement (skaar.christina@epa.gov)
Christina (Tina) Skaar is an attorney-advisor for EPA's Office of Site Remediation Enforcement. Since joining OSRE's Regional Support Division in 2005, Tina has served as a member of the Administrative and Judicial Procedures team, the Federal PRP (potentially responsible parties) team, as well as the Atlantic Research/Aviall team related to CERCLA contribution and cost recovery rights in the wake of those two seminal Supreme Court cases. Tina oversees components of OSRE's model settlement language team, helps to maintain and update the Agency's Cleanup Enforcement Model Language and Sample Documents database, and is OSRE's lead on the Model Remedial Design/Remedial Action Consent Decree and SOW. Tina was the staff lead on the 2019 Guidance, RD/RA Process for Expediting Negotiations and PRP Cleanup Starts and continues to monitor the duration of negotiations. Tina also served as Regional Liaison for Region 9 (Pacific Southwest Region, serving AZ, CA, HI, NV, Pacific Islands, and 148 Tribes) from 2008 to 2016. Tina earned her JD and MA from George Washington University in 2007 and 1995, respectively, and her BA from St. Olaf College in 1991. She is admitted to the New York Bar.
Moderator:
Jean Balent, U.S. EPA Technology Innovation and Field Services Division (balent.jean@epa.gov or 202-566-0832)
Ms Balent is on the staff of the EPA's Technology Innovation and Field Services Division where she has worked to collect and disseminate hazardous waste remediation and characterization information since 2003. Ms Balent manages the Clean Up Information Network website and actively supports online communication and collaboration resources available to EPA. She formerly worked with the US Army Corps of Engineers Environmental Engineering Division in the Buffalo District. Ms Balent was also a member of the SUNY-Buffalo Groundwater Research Group where she constructed and tested large scale models of groundwater flow. Ms Balent has also conducted research relating to the Great Lakes, environmental remediation, and brownfields re-development. She holds a Bachelor's degree in environmental engineering from SUNY-Buffalo and a Master's degree in Information Technology from AIU.
Webinar Slides and References:
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