I think that the record needs to be set straight on a number of fronts. Industry - not EPA - has been funding a vast majority of cleanups. More than 70 percent of site cleanups have been conducted and paid for by private parties. The law puts the burden of paying for cleanup squarely on responsible parties. The Trust fund only bears the costs of cleanup when no responsible party can be found, or where Congress has exempted the responsible parties. In the seven years since Superfund taxes expired, responsible parties continued to pay for all cleanup costs at their sites and reimbursed EPA for its costs to oversee cleanup. Last year, EPA collected a record $1.7 billion in cleanup funds from responsible parties - more than EPA spends for Superfund each year.
Of the remaining 30 percent of sites, the Bush Administration has not
cut funding for Superfund cleanups. All sites with on-going cleanups will
receive funding in fiscal year 2002 to allow work to continue, and no work is
being suspended. In my home state of
Oklahoma, one site will be allowed to begin cleanup. I do not think that EPA
funding this site at $3 million to begin clean up is a step in the wrong
direction. The other site, Tar Creek - the Nation's worst Superfund site, will
continue ongoing efforts to clean up the site.
The IG report is not an accurate depiction of what is really happening.
The Superfund cleanup construction program is constantly evolving, and funding
decisions are made over the course of the entire year - - not simply at the
beginning of the fiscal year. As a result, the Inspector's General report
represents a snap shot in time, two months ago, and does not accurately reflect
current funding decisions nor all final funding decisions. When phases of the
Superfund cleanup process are completed, some funding may remain in related
contracts. This left-over money may be applied to fund construction at other
sites. This funding is often secured toward the end of a fiscal year. Moreover,
final funding decisions may occur late in the fiscal year.
Far from cutting or eliminating sources of funding, EPA plans to use
all of its Fiscal Year 2002 funding for cleanup construction ($224 million) and
is also working diligently to secure additional funding from completed
Superfund contracts that have dollars left over after the bills are paid.
Sen. Boxer and I do not see eye-to-eye on a lot, but we worked very
well together on the brownfields legislation. However, when moving the brownfields
legislation, I made it crystal clear that the Superfund taxes should not be
reinstated until comprehensive reform is enacted. While important, brownfields
legislation is NOT comprehensive reform. Therefore, I will strongly oppose any
efforts to reinstate the taxes until true reforms are enacted.
Despite what will be implied today, Superfund will
continue to take action to address imminent threats to human health and the
environment through the Superfund emergency removal program. Furthermore, the Bush
Administration has been and will continue to ensure that our nation's most
contaminated sites are cleaned up.