International Retailer Participates in the PRP Committee for a CERCLA/Superfund Cleanup

Served as a large international client’s representative on the Potentially Responsible Party (PRP) committee for a federal CERCLA/Superfund cleanup at a rural site in Maine where the former site owner transported and deposited unknown quantities of waste oil from military bases, auto dealerships, municipalities, local garages, bulk transportation companies, industries, and utility companies, and then declared bankruptcy. Waste oils were released into site soils, and eventually entered the groundwater and fractured bedrock. The petroleum then polluted drinking water wells for dozens of homeowners in the area. Ultimately, hundreds of small local businesses and a handful of larger industrial manufacturers were brought into the PRP group to address the cleanup requirements. The resolution of our client’s liability took more than ten years, but resulted in a rare U.S. Environmental Protection Agency declaration of Technical Impracticability for the entire site, alleviating a significant level of effort and financial liability for the cleanup process.*