According to the EPA’s website, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, or CERCLA, better known as Superfund, was created to address abandoned hazardous waste sites. There were several incidents in the 1970’s that led to the enactment of the CERCLA Act, namely the toxic waste dumps located at Love Canal and Times Beach. CERCLA allows the EPA to clean up these sites as well as force the responsible parties to perform cleanups or reimburse the government for EPA lead cleanups.
There are two types of response actions that can be implemented, which include short-term removals and long-term removals. Short-term removals are used when actions may be taken to address a release that requires immediate action. Long-term removals are used when a response action is needed in an area that is not immediately life threatening. Long-term removals require that the site be listed on the NPL before action can be taken.
The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA), amended CERCLA in 1986. The amendments included; stressing the importance of permanent remedies and innovative treatment technologies in cleaning up hazardous sites; required Superfund actions to consider the standards and requirements found in other State and Federal environmental laws and regulations; provided new enforcement authorities and settlement tools; increased State involvement in every phase of the Superfund program; increased the focus on human health problems posed by hazardous waste sites; encouraged greater citizen participation in making decisions on how sites should be cleaned up; and increased the size of the trust fund to $8.5 billion. Each of these amendments were added because the EPA had gained experience during the first six years of implementing CERCLA.
The EPA's Superfund cleanup is a nine step process. First, a preliminary assessment is performed on the site and the surrounding area to determine what level of threat the area poses to human health and the environment. A site inspection is conducted of the area to provide the data needed for the Hazard Ranking System. The data collected determines what hazardous substances are found at the site. This information is then used for the second step of the cleanup process, which is to determine the ranking of the site on the National Priorities List. The NPL helps the EPA determine which sites warrant further investigation.
The third step in the superfund cleanup process is a remedial investigation and feasibility study. This step characterizes site conditions, determines the nature of the waste, assesses the risk to human health and environment, and tests the potential performance and cost of treatment technologies that are being considered. The feasibility study looks into the development, screening, and detailed evaluation of alternative remedial actions. This process leads to the fourth step, which is the Record of Decision. The ROD contains the site history, description, characteristics, community participation, enforcement activities, past and present activities, contaminated media, the contaminants present, scope and role of response action, and the remedy selected for cleanup.
Step five is the Remedial Design and Remedial Action. The remedial design is where the technical specifications for cleanup remedies and technologies are designed. The remedial action follows this and involves the actual construction or implementation phase of the site cleanup. When these tasks are completed, the site then enters phase six, which is construction completion. Sites qualify for this step, when any necessary physical construction is complete, whether or not final cleanup levels or other requirements have been achieved. Or the EPA has determined that the response action should be limited to measures that do not involve construction, or the site qualifies for deletion from the NPL. Step seven is Post Construction Completion, which ensures that Superfund response actions provide for the long-term protection of human health and the environment.
Step eight is the National Priorities List Deletion. If the EPA determines that no further response is required to protect human health or the environment, the site may be deleted from the NPL. The EPA, and the State, work together to determine that responsible or other parties have implemented all appropriate response actions required, that all appropriated Superfund financed responses have been implemented and that no further response by responsible parties is appropriate, and the remedial investigation and feasibility study have shown that the release poses no significant threat to public health or the environment. The final step is site reuse and redevelopment, which explores future uses of the site. The future use of the site is necessary to determine what level of cleanup is appropriate for the site. The EPA provides communities with the best opportunities to productively use the site following cleanup.
