EPA Updates Superfund National Priorities List to Clean Up Pollution, Address Public Health Risks

EPA Updates Superfund National Priorities List to Clean Up Pollution, Address Public Health Risks, and Build a Better America WASHINGTON (March 17, 2022) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is adding 12 sites Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) and is proposing to add another five. These are sites where releases of contamination pose significant human health and environmental risks. Cleaning up contaminated sites is important for the health, safety, and revitalization of communities. "No community deserves to have contaminated sites near where they live, work, play, and go to school. Nearly 2 out of 3 of the sites being proposed or added to the priorities list are in overburdened or underserved communities," said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. "EPA is building a better America by taking action to clean up some of the nation's most contaminated sites, protect communities' health, and return contaminated land to safe and productive reuse for future generations." Thousands of contaminated sites, from landfills, processing plants, to manufacturing facilities exist nationally due to hazardous waste being dumped, left out in the open, or otherwise improperly managed. President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will accelerate EPA's work to help communities clean up these contaminated sites with a $3.5 billion investment in the Superfund Remedial Program and reinstates the Superfund chemical excise taxes, making it one of the largest investments in American history to address legacy pollution. This historic investment strengthens EPA's ability to tackle threats to human health and the environment, and EPA has already set action in motion to clear the backlog of the 49 contaminated sites which had been awaiting funding to start remedial action. Superfund cleanups provide health and economic benefits to communities. The program is credited for significant reductions in both birth defects and blood-lead levels among children living near sites, and research has shown residential property values increase up to 24 percent within three miles of sites after cleanup. Further, thanks to Superfund cleanups, communities are now using previously blighted properties for a wide range of purposes, including retail businesses, office space, public parks, residences, warehouses, and solar power generation. As of 2021, EPA has collected economic data on 650 Superfund sites. At these sites, there are 10,230 businesses operating on these sites, 246,000 people employed, an estimated $18.6 billion in income earned by employees, and $65.8 billion in sales generated by businesses. With this Superfund NPL update, the Biden-Harris Administration is following through on its commitment to update the NPL twice a year, as opposed to once per year. The Superfund Program is also part of President Biden's Justice40 initiative, which aims to ensure that federal agencies deliver at least 40 percent of benefits from certain investments to underserved communities. EPA is adding the following sites to the NPL: Lower Neponset River, Boston/Milton, Massachusetts Meeker Avenue Plume, Brooklyn, New York Bear Creek Sediments, Baltimore County, Maryland Paden City Groundwater, Paden City, West Virginia Westside Lead, Atlanta, Georgia Galey and Lord Plant, Society Hill, South Carolina National Fireworks, Cordova, Tennessee North 5th Street Groundwater Contamination, Goshen, Indiana Michner Plating – Mechanic Street, Jackson, Michigan Southeast Hennepin Area Groundwater and Vapor, Minneapolis, Minnesota Unity Auto Mart, Unity, Wisconsin Bradford Island, Cascade Locks, Oregon EPA is proposing to add the following sites to the NPL: Lower Hackensack River, Bergen and Hudson Counties, New Jersey Brillo Landfill, Victory, New York Georgetown North Groundwater, Georgetown, Delaware Hercules Inc, Hattiesburg, Mississippi Highway 3 PCE, Le Mars, Iowa EPA is also withdrawing a previously proposed site, the Riverside Groundwater Contamination site in Indianapolis, Indiana, following the Agency's determination that the Indiana Department of Environmental Management is advancing the site's cleanup at the same standards as an EPA-lead cleanup. EPA remains committed to using all available tools to ensure the protection of human health and the environment Background The NPL includes the nation's most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination. The list serves as the basis for prioritizing EPA Superfund cleanup funding and enforcement actions. Only releases at non-federal sites included on the NPL are eligible to receive federal funding for long-term, permanent cleanup. Cleanup at federal facilities is funded by the lead federal agency responsible for the site. EPA proposes sites to the NPL based on a scientific determination of risks to people and the environment, consistent with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan. Before EPA adds a site to the NPL, a site must meet EPA's requirements and be proposed for addition to the list in the Federal Register, subject to a 60-day public comment period. EPA will add the site to the NPL if it continues to meet the listing requirements after the public comment period closes and the agency has responded to any comments. For information about Superfund and the NPL, please visit: Superfund For Federal Register notices and supporting documents for NPL and proposed sites, please visit: New Proposed NPL Sites and New NPL Sites

 

 

 

 

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