EPA officials tour Libby, meet with elected officials

Anticipated federal dollars for the continued maintenance of the Libby Superfund site are still working their way down the pipeline, according to state and federal officials.

EPA officials visited the Libby area and spoke with Lincoln County commissioners on Oct. 15 about the status of cleanup and maintenance efforts at the site. More than three months have passed since EPA officials transferred oversight of commercial and residential properties in Libby and Troy to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

As part of the handoff, the state agency was supposed to receive funds from the EPA for maintenance of the properties. During the Oct. 15 meeting, Mike Cirian, EPA remedial project manager for the Libby site, said feds had approved the funding.

While unsure if DEQ officials had the money in hand, Jenny Chambers, administrator of the waste management division at DEQ, said she was sure the process was on track.

Chambers made a similar announcement during a Sept. 24 meeting of the Libby Asbestos Superfund Oversight Committee. She told committee members that while the EPA had approved funding, state officials were waiting on a five-day congressional hold before they could access the dollars.

For Lincoln County officials, the arrival of the federal funds is critical. The money will go toward supporting local property owners dealing with sampling and abatement projects. The months-long delay has forced residents to bid and pay for contractors. While most property owners can expect eventual reimbursement, Virginia Kocieda, director of the county Asbestos Resource Program, said the situation has put undue stress on residents.

“Not many property owners can afford abatement contractors out of pocket,” Kocieda said.

Jason Rappe, DEQ project officer, said the ARP was working with six property owners at various stages of sampling and abatement during the September meeting of the Libby Asbestos Superfund Oversight Committee. These projects are expected to range from $1,330 to up to $30,000, according to a summary of costs document reviewed at that meeting.

The delay in federal funding has left the county to directly support the ARP as it assists the property owners conducting abatements. Previously, County Commissioner Mark Peck (D-1) said he hoped the deal between DEQ and the EPA would reimburse the county for the funds it put into the program.

Despite the delays, EPA officials said the Libby site is fortunate compared to most Superfund sites in that it has a reliable stream of funding.

“I’ve never worked on a [Superfund site] where you have a guaranteed pot of [operations and maintenance] money like this,” Cirian said at the October meeting.

The EPA has set aside nearly $12 million for operation and maintenance costs. As part of the 2008 W.R. Grace bankruptcy settlement, the DEQ received over $5 million. Each year, the DEQ also receives $600,000 for cleanup and longtime maintenance costs. $120,000 of this yearly allowance automatically goes into a trust account — which had a balance of over $1.3 million in September.

Peck thanked the EPA officials at the meeting for their response to a letter commissioners drafted opposing the demolition of the Rainy Creek Dam. That missive was directed at DEQ officials, but also sent to the federal agency.

“I think there’s a lot of good thoughts in there but you know how the process goes, we have to do our feasibility studies,” Greg Sopkin, administrator for EPA Region 8, said in regards to the commissioners’ letter.

Built to hold back asbestos-laden tailings, the Rainy Creek Dam is currently undergoing renovation work expected to cost between $50 and $100 million. Peck announced in late September that EPA and DEQ officials were contemplating replacing the structure with several new dams closer to the top of Vermiculite Mountain.

Both Peck and County Commissioner Jerry Bennett (D-2) said this risked letting toxic material flow into the Kootenai River. In their Oct. 5 letter, commissioners called on state and federal officials to manage water runoff from the site, limit construction in the area, create an interagency fire response plan and develop a public outreach and education campaign focus on the site. The letter also calls for any natural resource damage dollars recovered from Grace to be spent in Lincoln County.

After receiving no public comments, officials expect to partially delete the BNSF railroad corridor — or Operable Unit 6 — in 2022*. Officials have already partially delisted Operable Units 1 and 2, which concern the former export plant and the former screening plant. At the former Stimson Lumber mill — or Operable Unit 5 — Cirian said officials are waiting on an environmental covenant before getting it delisted.

The EPA is accepting comments on an institutional control implement and assurance plan for Operable Unit 8, the highway transportation corridor, until Oct. 22. Officials expect to partially delete the unit in 2021.*

“Looking back 15 years ago or so, who would have thought we would have gotten this far,” Cirian said.

• The dates for the partial delisting of Operable Unit 6 and Operable Unit 8 were changed after EPA officials said they misspoke during the Oct. 15 meeting.