World Trade Center document custody notice, Law Department

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

emergency action plan should be implemented.”’^ In short, die EPA should not wait for people to get sick before it acts, and it clearly has the authority to act under this law. An EPA memo entided “Guidance on the Use of Section 303 of the Clean Air Act” was issued to the Regional offices on September 15,1983, outlining these very points.’^

Although the Clean Air Act is primarily intended to address source pollution, Section 303 illustrates that EPA has authority under several statutes to respond to the release of hazardous materials that pose a threat to human health. Also, the Clean Air Act is not the only governing statute. The EPA has the authority to act on indoor air under die National Contingency Plan, and this authority is not drawn into question by the Clean Air Act

As administrator of the NCP, the EPA has die responsibility through OSCs to direct response efforts and coordinate all other efforts at ±e scene of a release.These response efforts include indoor air and environments. The NCP mandates that the OSC, among other things, collect pertinent diets about the release, the nature, amount and location of released materials, the pathways to human exposure, and the potential impact on human health and the environment.®’ There is no delineation between indoor and outdoor air, particularly where there is a direat to public health. In feet, under die NCP, the EPA is authorized to “enter any vessel, fecility, establishment or other place, property, or location.. .and conduct, complete, operate, and maintain any response actions authorized by CERCLA or these regulations.”®^ In other words, a response under the NCP is not limited to outdoor air, and the EPA has specific authority to remediate indoor environments.

Although the EPA has discretion to delegate response efforts to other agencies, all such decisions must be made through the organizational structure of the NCP, for which the EPA has oversight’’ Therefore, any actions taken by any agency in response to the release of hazardous substances produced by the collapse of the World Trade Center Bill under EPA oversight. If the City takes the lead on indoor air, the EPA is not relieved of its responsibility in this regard.

As mentioned previously, die EPA, on its website and in public press releases, has referred people to the New York City Department of Health (NYC DOH) recommendations for guidance on reoccupying their homes and businesses.’^ These

“ S. Rep. No. 91-1196,91“ Cong., 2“* Sess. 36 (1970). Cited in EPA Memorandum: Guidance on the Use of Section 303 of the Clean Air Act Edward E. Reich and Michael S. Alushin, September 15,1983. EPA Memorandum: Guidance on the Use of Section 303 of the Clean Air Act Edward E. Reich and Michael S. Alushin, September 15, 1983. 40 CFR 300.135(a) ” 40 CFR 300.135(c) “ 40 CFR 300.400(d) ’’40CFR300 EPA Region 11 Press Release, “EPA and OSHA Web Sites Provide Enviromnental Monitoring Data From World Trade Center And Surrounding Areas: Data Confirms No Significant Public Health Risks; Rescue Crews and Nearby Residents Should Take Appropriate Precautions,” October 3,2001.

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