§ 300.5 Definitions.

Terms not defined in this section have the meaning given by CERCLA, the OPA, or the CWA.

Activation means notification by telephone or other expeditious manner or, when required, the assembly of some or all appropriate members of the RRT or NRT.

Alternative water supplies as defined by section 101(34) of CERCLA, includes, but is not limited to, drinking water and household water supplies.

Applicable requirements means those cleanup standards, standards of control, and other substantive requirements, criteria, or limitations promulgated under federal environmental or state environmental or facility siting laws that specifically address a hazardous substance, pollutant, contaminant, remedial action, location, or other circumstance found at a CERCLA site. Only those state standards that are identified by a state in a timely manner and that are more stringent than federal requirements may be applicable.

Area Committee (AC) as provided for by CWA sections 311(a)(18) and (j)(4), means the entity appointed by the President consisting of members from qualified personnel of federal, state, and local agencies with responsibilities that include preparing an area contingency plan for an area designated by the President.

Area contingency plan (ACP) as provided for by CWA sections 311(a)(19) and (j)(4), means the plan prepared by an Area Committee that is developed to be implemented in conjunction with the NCP and RCP, in part to address removal of a worst case discharge and to mitigate or prevent a substantial threat of such a discharge from a vessel, offshore facility, or onshore facility operating in or near an area designated by the President.

Bioaccumulation is the process of accumulation of chemicals in the tissue of organisms through any route, including respiration, ingestion, or direct contact with the ambient or contaminated medium.

Bioconcentration is the accumulation of chemicals in the tissues of organisms from water alone.

Biodegradation is a process by which microorganisms metabolically decompose contaminants into biomass and smaller molecular compounds such as carbon dioxide, water, and end products.

Biological agents are microorganisms (typically bacteria, fungi, or algae) or biological catalysts, such as enzymes, that can enhance the biodegradation of a contaminated environment.

Bioremediation is the process of enhancing the ability of microorganisms to convert contaminants into biomass and smaller molecular end products by the addition of materials into a contaminated environment to accelerate the natural biodegradation process.

Bioremediation agents are biological agents and/or nutrient additives deliberately introduced into a contaminated environment to increase the rate of biodegradation and mitigate any deleterious effects caused by the contaminant constituents. Bioremediation agents include microorganisms, enzymes, and nutrient additives such as fertilizers containing bioavailable forms of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.

Burning agents are additives that, through physical or chemical means, improve the combustibility of the materials to which they are applied.

CERCLA is the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986.

CERCLIS was the abbreviation for the CERCLA Information System. This system has been retired and has been replaced with SEMS, the Superfund Enterprise Management System.

Chemical agents are elements, compounds, or mixtures designed to facilitate the removal of oil from a contaminated environment and to mitigate any deleterious effects. Chemical agent categories include burning agents, dispersants, herding agents, solidifiers, surface washing agents, and bioremediation agents that consist of nutrient additives.

Claim for purposes of a release under CERCLA, means a demand in writing for a sum certain; for purposes of a discharge under CWA, it means a request, made in writing for a sum certain, for compensation for damages or removal costs resulting from an incident.

Claimant as defined by section 1001 of the OPA means any person or government who presents a claim for compensation under Title I of the OPA.

Coastal waters for the purposes of classifying the size of discharges, means the waters of the coastal zone except for the Great Lakes and specified ports and harbors on inland rivers.

Coastal zone as defined for the purpose of the NCP, means all United States waters subject to the tide, United States waters of the Great Lakes, specified ports and harbors on inland rivers, waters of the contiguous zone, other waters of the high seas subject to the NCP, and the land surface or land substrata, ground waters, and ambient air proximal to those waters. The term coastal zone delineates an area of federal responsibility for response action. Precise boundaries are determined by EPA/USCG agreements and identified in federal regional contingency plans.

Coast Guard District Response Group (DRG) as provided for by CWA sections 311(a)(20) and (j)(3), means the entity established by the Secretary of the department in which the USCG is operating, within each USCG district, and shall consist of: the combined USCG personnel and equipment, including marine firefighting equipment, of each port in the district; additional prepositioned response equipment; and a district response advisory team.

Community relations means EPA's program to inform and encourage public participation in the Superfund process and to respond to community concerns. The term “public” includes citizens directly affected by the site, other interested citizens or parties, organized groups, elected officials, and potentially responsible parties (PRPs).

Community relations coordinator means lead agency staff who work with the OSC/RPM to involve and inform the public about the Superfund process and response actions in accordance with the interactive community relations requirements set forth in the NCP.

Contiguous zone means the zone of the high seas, established by the United States under Article 24 of the Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone, which is contiguous to the territorial sea and which extends nine miles seaward from the outer limit of the territorial sea.

Cooperative agreement is a legal instrument EPA uses to transfer money, property, services, or anything of value to a recipient to accomplish a public purpose in which substantial EPA involvement is anticipated during the performance of the project.

Damages as defined by section 1001 of the OPA means damages specified in section 1002(b) of the Act, and includes the cost of assessing these damages.

Discharge as defined by section 311(a)(2) of the CWA, includes, but is not limited to, any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, or dumping of oil, but excludes discharges in compliance with a permit under section 402 of the CWA, discharges resulting from circumstances identified and reviewed and made a part of the public record with respect to a permit issued or modified under section 402 of the CWA, and subject to a condition in such permit, or continuous or anticipated intermittent discharges from a point source, identified in a permit or permit application under section 402 of the CWA, that are caused by events occurring within the scope of relevant operating or treatment systems. For purposes of the NCP, discharge also means substantial threat of discharge.

Dispersants are substances that emulsify, disperse, or solubilize oil by promoting the formation of small droplets or particles of oil in the water column.

Drinking water supply as defined by section 101(7) of CERCLA, means any raw or finished water source that is or may be used by a public water system (as defined in the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300 et seq.) or as drinking water by one or more individuals.

Environment as defined by section 101(8) of CERCLA, means the navigable waters, the waters of the contiguous zone, and the ocean waters of which the natural resources are under the exclusive management authority of the United States under the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.); and any other surface water, ground water, drinking water supply, land surface or subsurface strata, or ambient air within the United States or under the jurisdiction of the United States.

Exclusive economic zone, as defined by OPA section 1001, means the zone established by Presidential Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated March 10, 1983, including the ocean waters of the areas referred to as “eastern special areas” in Article 3(1) of the Agreement between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, signed June 1, 1990.

Facility as defined by section 101(9) of CERCLA, means any building, structure, installation, equipment, pipe or pipeline (including any pipe into a sewer or publicly owned treatment works), well, pit, pond, lagoon, impoundment, ditch, landfill, storage container, motor vehicle, rolling stock, or aircraft, or any site or area, where a hazardous substance has been deposited, stored, disposed of, or placed, or otherwise come to be located; but does not include any consumer product in consumer use or any vessel. As defined by section 1001 of the OPA, it means any structure, group of structures, equipment, or device (other than a vessel) which is used for one or more of the following purposes: Exploring for, drilling for, producing, storing, handling, transferring, processing, or transporting oil. This term includes any motor vehicle, rolling stock, or pipeline used for one or more of these purposes.