In Re: Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether ("MTBE") Products Liability Litigation

Filing 3902

DECLARATION of Susan M. Dean in Opposition re: (318 in 1:08-cv-00312-SAS) MOTION for Summary Judgment as to Getty Property Corp.'s Third-Party Complaint.. Document filed by Getty Properties Corp.. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Exhibit 2, # 3 Exhibit 3, # 4 Exhibit 4, # 5 Exhibit 5, # 6 Exhibit 6, # 7 Exhibit 7, # 8 Exhibit 8, # 9 Exhibit 9, # 10 Exhibit 10, # 11 Exhibit 11, # 12 Exhibit 12, # 13 Exhibit 13)Filed In Associated Cases: 1:00-cv-01898-SAS-DCF, 1:08-cv-00312-SAS(McMeekin, John)

Case 1:08-cv-00312-SAS Document 320-11

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
zn Re: Methyl Tertiary
Butyl Ether ("MTBE")
Products viability
Litigation

Master File
No. 1:00-1898
MDL 1358
(SAS): M21-88

This Document Relates To:
New jersey Department of Environmental
Protection, et al., v. Atlantic Richfield
co., et al.
►vo. 08 Civ. 00312
- - August 2, 2012
- - oral Rule 30(b)(6)
deposition of Plainfiiff New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection,
through its representative GARY S.
LTPSIUS, REGARDING HP DELTA, taken
pursuant to notice, was held at the
offices of the STATE OF NEW JERSEY,
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION,
401 East State Street, Trenton, New
jersey, beginning at 9:56 a.m., on the
above date, before Kimberly A. Cahill, a
Federally Approved Registered Merit
Reporter and rvotary Public for the state
of New ]ersey.

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GOLKOW TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
877.370.3377 phi 917.591.5672 fax
[e-mail]

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APPEARANCES:
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MILLER, AXLINE & SAWYER
BY: BRIAN Q. SHANNON, ESQUIRE
1050 Fulton Avenue, Suite 100
Sacramento, California 95825-4225
[phone]
[e-mail]
Representing the Plaintiffs
EIMER STAHL LLP
BY: PAMELA R. HANEBUTT, ESQUIRE
224 South Michigan Avenue
Suite 1100
Chicago, Illinois 60604-2516
[phone]
[e-mail]
Representing the Defendant, CITGO
Petroleum
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Case 1:08-cv-00312-SAS Document 320-11

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g108021Z.txt
Mr. Corcory retired.
A.
zs there someone else that
Q.
you could have spoken to in his stead?
MR. SHANNON: Calls for
speculation.
THE WITNESS: Actually 2'd
like to correct testimony that I
made earlier, because z just
remembered someone z did speak to.
MS. HANEBUTT: Okdy.
THE WITNESS: Bradi Montozzi
-- her name at the time z believe
was Sklar. It may have been
Montozzi on some of the documents
-- but she worked for Mr. Corcory
and z had a brief discussion with
her, which z just forgot about.
BY MS. HANEBUTT:
what did you talk to her
Q.
about?
A.
z mentioned to her that i
was being deposed for this HP Delta site
and that she had been -- that i mentioned
that z had seen her name listed on some
of the enforcement documents at the time
she worked for Mr. corcory.
,4nd z asked her what she
remembered about the -- the site,
enforcement-wise.
,4nd what did she have to say
Q.
in that regard?
,4.
She told me that she really
didn't remember much about it at all, and
it wasn't a very long discussion. She
just said, you know, I barely remember
the case. z remember there was some -some potable wells that were
contaminated, but she said she didn't
really have much detail to give me.
Is it the DEP's contention
Q.
that releases from the HP Delta station
caused the MTBE impacts to the potable
wells along Lancaster Road?
MR. SHANNON: Cd115 fol"
expert opinion. 1t's beyond the
scope for which this witness is
being produced.
THE WITNESS: COUId yoU
clarify the question, the NJDEP's
position?
BY MS. HANEBUTT:
well, you're here today as a
Q.
representative of the DEP.
Right.
A.
And as such, you have an
Q.
obligation to answer questions based on
information known to or available to DEP,
and I'm just wondering if DEP has a
position that the HP Delta station is
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g1080212.txt
responsible for the MTBE impacts in the
potable wells along Lancaster rtoad.
MR. SHANNON:

Calls for

expert opinion and it's beyond the
scope for which this witness is
being produced.
THE WITNESS:

I believe it

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would be NJDEP's position that the
contamination -- the MTBE

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contamination and TBA

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contamination found at the HP
Delta site is in some part
responsible for the potable well
contamination associated with the
Lancaster Road site. And that
would be shown by the directive
and in the inclusion of a
Lancaster Road well issue in the
HP Delta directive.

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BY MS. HANEBUTT:

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Q.
And what is the basis 'For
concluding that the HP Delta site is in
some part responsible for the Lancaster
Road contamination?

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MR. SHANNON:

Calls for

expert opinion. It's beyond the
scope for which this witness is
being produced. I think that
question is -MS. HANEBUTT:

No coaching.

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You can just state your objection
-- z'm just going to tell you, as
a matter of courtesy, because
you're new to the case and you

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have not met Her Honor, Judge
scheindlin, but she does not take
very kindly to coaching witnesses
on the record.
,411 you're allowed to do is
state the basis for your
objection. ,4nything else is
improper.
And if z have to, z'll get
special Master warner on the
phone. he, in fact, has invited
as much, so --

a

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MR. SHANNON:

Thdt'S Wh1~ I

was in the process of doing,
counsel, and if z may finish, it's
beyond the scope for which this
witness is produced.
I think that question is
most appropriately addressed to
Mr. Akshay Parikh, who will be
produced later today regarding the
issues related to the Lancaster
Road wells.
MR. HANEBUTT:

Are you able

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contaminants that were found in
the potable wells.
BY MS. HANEBUTT;
Anything else?
Q.
MR. SHANNON: same
objection.
THE WITNESS: As I mentioned
before, I think the fact that
Mw-01 contaminant levels found
when the system was shut off,
which is in the direction of the
potable wells, also would lend one
to think that -- you know, that
the northwest direction of the
site, notwithstanding the
groundwater -- deep groundwater
flow levels, it still seemed to be
a potential source of the potable
well contamination.
BY MS. HANEBUTT:
what degree of confidence do
Q.
you attach to that conclusion that HP
Delta is a source of impacts to the
Lancaster Road wells?
MR. SHANNON: It's vague and
ambiguous as phrased, calls for
expert opinion.
MS. HANEBUTT: You just said
potential, so I'm trying to
explore that.
MR. SHANNON: S1m2
objections; beyond the scope of
the deposition -- or beyond the
scope for which this witness is
being produced.
THE WITNESS: Again, I think
Mr. Parikh would have some good
insi ght into this question, but
z'd be happy to answer the
question, if z may.
MR. SHANNON: Go ahead.
THE WITNESS: okay.
z would say it's -- looking
at the total history of the case
and the contaminants and the
proximity, that it's a -- the HP
Delta site is a likely source.
so you asked me to define
the probability, z would say
likely. Likely doesn't mean for
certain, but it's reasonable to
assume that there has been a ma7or
component coming from the HP Delta
site.
BY MS. HANEBUTT:
Aside from Mr. Corcory, is
Q.
there anyone else that you would have
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