Historic Area Remediation Site (HARS)-Specific Polychlorinated Biphenyl Worm Tissue Criterion

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today modifies the designation of the Historic Area Remediation Site (hereinafter referred to as HARS) by establishing a HARS-specific worm tissue polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) criterion of 113 parts per billion (ppb) for use in determining the suitability of proposed dredged material for use as Remediation Material. This amendment to the HARS designation establishes a pass/fail criterion for evaluating PCBs in worm tissue from bioaccumulation tests performed on dredged material proposed for use at the HARS as Remediation Material. The PCB criterion will remain in effect until after EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) complete their review of the 2002 scientific peer review comments on the HARS testing evaluation process used for bioaccumulation data from dredged material proposed for use at the HARS as Remediation Material for human health effects, conduct and respond to the comments on the future scientific peer review on the HARS testing evaluation process used for bioaccumulation data from dredged material proposed for use at the HARS as Remediation Material for ecological effects, and revise, as necessary, the HARS testing evaluation process used for bioaccumulation data from dredged material proposed for use as Remediation Material at the HARS for all contaminants of concern in accordance with the September 27, 2000 Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) (USEPA, 2000a) between EPA and the USACE. Among other things, the September 27, 2000 MOA established an interim guidance value of 113 ppb for PCBs in the tissues of bioassayed worms, to be considered when determining whether proposed dredged material from the New York/New Jersey Harbor is acceptable for placement at the HARS. At the time of the MOA, the agencies agreed that, while the peer review was not complete, the implementation of this interim change was warranted based upon existing information. This change is designed to ensure that the remedial goals