Encyclopedia > Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
Checking the status of a cleanup site
CERCLA is an acronym for the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 to 9675 (commonly known as the Superfund), which was enacted by the United States Congress on December 11, 1980 in response to the Love Canal disaster. This law created a tax on petroleum and chemical industries and provided broad Federal authority to respond directly to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment. Over five years, $1.6 billion was collected and the tax went to a trust fund for cleaning up abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.
CERCLA established prohibitions and requirements concerning closed and abandoned hazardous waste sites, and:
provided for liability of persons responsible for releases of hazardous waste at these sites; and
established a trust fund to provide for cleanup when no responsible party could be identified.
Short-term removals, where actions may be taken to address releases or threatened releases requiring prompt response.
Long-term remedial response actions, that permanently and significantly reduce the dangers associated with releases or threats of releases of hazardous substances that are serious, but not immediately life threatening. These actions can be conducted only at sites listed on Environmental Protection Agency's, (EPA), National Priorities List of Hazardous Substances, (NPL), in the United States and territories.
CERCLA also enabled the revision of the National Contingency Plan (NCP). The NCP provided the guidelines and procedures needed to respond to releases and threatened releases of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. The NCP also established the National List of Priorities Sites.
Subchapter I of the 1983 amendments established a comprehensive system to react to releases of hazardous substances and to determine liability and compensation for those affected (42 U.S.C. The President is authorized to notify Federal and State natural resource trustees of potential damages to natural resources and to coordinate related assessments [42 U.S.C. 9604 (b)(2)].
The Department of the Interior is a trustee for natural resources, and the Service is responsible for the protection and restoration of trust resources injured by uncontrolled releases of hazardous materials.
The Service is responsible for conducting assessments to establish injury and the dollar equivalent of that injury for collection of damages from parties responsible for releasing hazardous materials.
Responsible parties are liable to the U.S., the state or an Indian tribe for damages for injury to, destruction of, or loss of natural resources belonging to, managed by, controlled by, or appertaining to the U.S., the state or the tribe.
There is no liability where: (1) the damages were specifically identified as an irreversible and irretrievable commitment of natural resources in an environmental impact statement or similar analysis, (2) the decision to grant the permit or license authorizes the commitment, and (3) the facility was complying with the permit or license.
The Act contains extensive provisions on the procedures to be followed for the submission and negotiation of settlement proposals, on public participation in the settlement process, on the allocation of responsibility and on covenants not to sue once agreement is reached.
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