Environmental Protection Agency Superfund

Environmental Protection Agency Superfund
Name	Environmental Protection Agency Superfund
Caption	Residents and media at Love Canal during the 1978 crisis
Established	1980
Jurisdiction	United States
Parent agency	United States Environmental Protection Agency
Website	(see Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act)

Environmental Protection Agency Superfund The Environmental Protection Agency Superfund is a federal program established to identify, investigate, and remediate hazardous waste sites across the United States, created in response to high-profile contamination episodes such as Love Canal, Times Beach, Missouri, Valley of the Drums, and concerns highlighted by investigations like the EPA's Hazardous Waste Report. The program stems from landmark legislation including the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and has involved agencies and institutions such as the United States Congress, United States Department of Justice, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and state environmental agencies in coordinated responses.

History

The program's origins trace to crises at locations like Love Canal, Times Beach, Missouri, Valley of the Drums, and industrial sites tied to companies such as Hooker Chemical, Union Carbide, and Dow Chemical Company, prompting Congress to pass the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 and later amendments such as the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 and debates involving members of the United States Senate, United States House of Representatives, and presidents including Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush. Early enforcement actions involved litigation by the United States Department of Justice against corporations and landowners, coordination with State and tribal governments, and scientific input from institutions like the National Research Council, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and academic centers at Harvard University and Johns Hopkins University.

Program Overview

The program operates through the United States Environmental Protection Agency regional offices, coordinates with state agencies such as the California Environmental Protection Agency, utilizes regulatory frameworks like the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act for overlapping authority, and interacts with stakeholders including environmental justice advocates, community groups associated with Love Canal and Hudson River PCBs, industry representatives from firms like ExxonMobil and DuPont, and legal entities such as the United States Department of Justice and private law firms engaged in Superfund litigation.

Site Identification and Listing

Sites are reported through mechanisms involving the National Priorities List, referrals from state agencies like the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, citizen petitions referencing incidents like Times Beach, Missouri and Love Canal, and federal assessments employing tools from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for ecological risk. Listing decisions use the Hazard Ranking System and consultations with tribal governments such as the Navajo Nation and organizations including the Environmental Council of the States, with legal oversight informed by precedents from cases involving Anaconda Copper, W.R. Grace and Company, and Dow Chemical Company.

Cleanup Processes and Technologies

Remediation strategies at Superfund sites have ranged from containment systems used at Hanford Site and Love Canal to in situ treatments like bioremediation demonstrated at Hudson River PCBs and chemical oxidation used at facilities formerly owned by Union Carbide and Monsanto. Engineering controls have incorporated technologies from firms connected to projects at Times Beach, Missouri and Wilmington Site while scientific guidance has been provided by the National Research Council, Environmental Protection Agency laboratories, and university research centers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, and Michigan State University that studied methods including soil vapor extraction, pump-and-treat systems, thermal desorption, capping, and monitored natural attenuation used at sites such as Gowanus Canal and Oronogo-Duenweg Mining Belt.

Funding and Liability

Funding mechanisms have included appropriations to the United States Environmental Protection Agency from the federal treasury, the original Superfund trust financed by petroleum taxes and chemical industry levies until their expiration, and settlement recoveries pursued by the United States Department of Justice against responsible parties like ExxonMobil, Chevron, and General Electric. Liability principles derive from the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, including strict, joint, and several liability applied in cases such as United States v. Hooker Chemical-related disputes and settlings involving General Electric for Hudson River PCBs, with financial instruments like potentially responsible party (PRP) settlements, consent decrees, and enforcement actions under the aegis of federal courts and state attorneys general such as those from New York and New Jersey.

Governance, Policy, and Legal Framework

Governance integrates statutory frameworks—primarily the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and amendments from the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986—with judicial rulings such as decisions by the United States Supreme Court and appellate courts in matters like allocation of cleanup costs and interpretation of liability; regulatory guidance is promulgated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and enforced by the United States Department of Justice, with policy debates involving the Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, members of the United States Congress, state governors, and advocacy groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, and environmental justice organizations representing communities at Love Canal and Tar Creek Superfund Site.

Impact, Controversies, and Case Studies

The program's impacts include long-term remediation at high-profile sites like Hudson River PCBs (General Electric), health studies around Love Canal (Hooker Chemical), and redevelopment efforts at reclaimed properties including former industrial areas in Buffalo, New York and Cleveland, Ohio; controversies involve disputes over liability allocation in litigation such as United States v. Bestfoods, debates about funding lapses following the expiration of industry taxes in the 1990s, community concerns about environmental justice in places like Tar Creek Superfund Site and Kettleman Hills, and technical controversies over remediation efficacy at sites including Hanford Site and Gowanus Canal. Notable case studies include the litigation and cleanup negotiations involving General Electric on the Hudson River PCBs, emergency responses at Times Beach, Missouri, and long-term monitoring at Love Canal, each illustrating interactions among entities such as the United States Environmental Protection Agency, United States Department of Justice, state agencies, corporations like Dow Chemical Company and ExxonMobil, and affected communities.

Category:United States environmental law Category:United States Environmental Protection Agency