Superfund Bill Would Undercut Cleanups, Promote Lawsuits

Superfund reauthorization legislation scheduled to be voted on today by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee would lead to weaker and slower cleanups, according to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). The bill is a revised version of S.8, initially introduced by Superfund Subcommittee Chairman Bob Smith (R-NH) and others last year.

“The revised bill has a number of seriously flawed provisions that will result in inadequate cleanups and continued threats to public health,” said Karen Florini, an EDF senior attorney. “It allows contamination of clean ground water in too many instances, weakens treatment requirements, and exempts Superfund cleanups from requirements that apply to all other hazardous wastes. It also fails to assure that any ‘institutional controls’ adopted as part of cleanups — such as restrictions to prevent digging at former waste sites are effective and fully —enforceable. And its provisions on compensation for natural resource damages would fail to provide for full restoration and public compensation.”

“In addition, S. 8 undercuts the polluter-pays principle. For example, the bill’s pay-the-polluters provision requires the Superfund Trust Fund to partly reimburse polluters who already agreed to carry out cleanups, a clearly unwarranted windfall,” said Florini. “Meanwhile, the bill introduces a plethora of new terms that will give rise to delays while everyone argues about what the new terms mean. Eventually, those arguments will wind up in court.”

“The bill has several sins of omission as well,” said Florini. “It doesn’t do anything to enhance public Right to Know, or to strengthen environmental justice considerations in the cleanup program.”

In a letter distributed yesterday to all members of the Committee, EDF joined with the Friends of the Earth, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, US PIRG and Clean Water Action in urging opposition to the bill. Attached to the letter was a three-page fact sheet detailing problems with the bill. A separate letter from Robert Bullard, Charles Lee, and other leaders in the Environmental Justice community was also delivered, urging opposition to the bill’s “Brownfields” provisions because they would undercut EPA’s ability to assure effective cleanups.