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Thanking Our Federal Partners
Preface | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Federal Partners | Timeline
EPA has primary responsibility for implementing Superfund, but because of the complexity of hazardous waste issues, the Agency has relied on the respective strengths of the following Federal partners to carry out its mission of protecting human health and the environment:
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) contributes to the understanding of the negative health effects associated with exposure to hazardous substances, identifies parties at risk of exposure, and intervenes to protect communities from exposure. Since ATSDR was established, it has conducted assessments or consultations at more than 3,000 hazardous waste sites.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
provides specialized equipment and
personnel to assist with the design and construction of large scale remedial actions at Superfund sites. In addition, USACE's Center of
Expertise and its Rapid Response Program provide nationwide support to Superfund. USACE has received nearly 5,000 assignments over the last
18 years.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is responsible for preventing releases at USDA facilities as well as the efficient management and cleanup of hazardous materials when releases occur. USDA has inventoried and characterized over 2,000 sites and completed over 300 removal actions and other responses.
Department of Defense (DoD)
responds to releases and
threatened releases at military facilities. The Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) has responded at 95 percent of the
nearly 28,000 potentially contaminated DoD sites - and cleaned up 62 percent of these sites.
Department of Energy (DOE) ensures cleanup of radioactive, chemical, and hazardous wastes that were left after 50 years of nuclear weapons production, and associated research and development activities. By the end of 1999, a total of 6,810 releases had been identified -- of which 4,053 were in the assessment phase, 876 were in the cleanup phase, and 1,881 had been completed. Three DOE sites have been cleaned up and deleted from the NPL.
Department of the Interior (DOI) operates programs in support of EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard for preparedness and response actions, and performs natural resource damage assessment and restoration functions during an oil discharge or a release of hazardous materials. DOI is designated as a Natural Resource Trustee and is also responsible for developing the regulations to determine the extent of harm to a natural resource.
Department of Justice (DOJ) represents EPA and other Federal agencies in judicial actions in Federal court to enforce the provisions of CERCLA that require PRPs to perform or pay for site cleanup. DOJ has worked with EPA to transform the Superfund program by prompting responsible parties to enter into settlements or voluntarily comply with administrative orders, rather than litigating with the government. DOJ also represents the Federal trustees when there is a need to recover damages resulting from injuries to natural resources.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides support to State, Tribal, and local governments and to the private sector for responding to releases of hazardous substances. Some of FEMA's activities include: distributing information; planning for emergencies; training for emergencies; membership and participation in the 13 Regional Response Teams; and the administration of $5 million each year to State governments and Tribes for hazardous materials (HAZMAT) training.
National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) sponsors two major Superfund programs: the Hazardous Substances Basic Research and Training Program and the Worker Education and Training Program. These two programs have successfully trained over 800,000 workers across the country by providing nearly 42,000 classroom and hands-on training courses that account for over 12 million contact hours of training.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) acts on behalf of the Secretary of Commerce as a natural resource trustee. NOAA trust resources include coastal and marine fisheries, marine mammals, resources of National Marine Sanctuaries and Estuarine Research Reserves, tidal wetlands, and other coastal habitats. Through the Coastal Protection and Restoration Program, NOAA has worked with EPA, PRPs, and other Federal, State, and Tribal trustees to initiate cleanup and restoration activities at over 500 sites, ensuring more environmentally protective remedies and cleaner, healthier coastal habitats.
United States Coast Guard (USCG)
continuously maintains facilities
for the surveillance of oil discharges and hazardous substance releases that occur in the coastal zone. USCG administers the National Response
Center (NRC) which provides a centralized means for coordinating national response logistics for responding to releases. NRC also maintains
a database of critical hazardous substance information that can quickly be provided to responders in order to help identify a substance and
thereby correctly choose an appropriate response action.
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For Further Information . . . . . . on the Superfund program, please consult the Superfund Home Page or contact William Ross at (703) 603-8798 or ross.william@epa.gov |
