EPA’s 10 regional offices implement Superfund within several  states and, in some cases, territories. When EPA decides not to list a site on the NPL or  otherwise retain oversight, it may defer oversight of the site’s cleanup to  other federal and state cleanup programs. CERCLA and its implementing  regulations establish a process of specific steps to evaluate and to clean  up sites. States Play a Critical Role in Characterizing and Cleaning Up Contaminated Sites

As we reported in April 2013, states, in consultation with EPA, participate  in the identification and cleanup of hazardous waste sites eligible for the  NPL in many ways. Examples of this participation include the following:
States may notify EPA of potential hazardous waste sites for listing in  the Superfund program database;
States may act under cooperative agreements with EPA to evaluate  the relative potential for sites being considered for the NPL to pose a  threat to human health and the environment;
As a matter of policy, EPA seeks concurrence from state governors or  environmental agency heads before proposing a site for listing on the  NPL;
States may assume the lead oversight role at NPL sites under  cooperative agreements with EPA; and
EPA may only pay for a remedial action at a site if the relevant state  agrees, among other things, to pay a portion of the cleanup expenses,  as well as all operations and maintenance costs after construction of  the cleanup remedy is completed. In addition to overseeing cleanup at some sites on the NPL, states may  oversee cleanup at sites that are eligible for listing on the NPL but that  were not reported to EPA for listing in the Superfund program database. In fact, as we reported in April 2013, this approach is the most  common for cleanup of sites that are eligible for listing on the NPL. As of  December 2012, of the 3,402 sites EPA identified as eligible for the NPL,  EPA regions had deferred oversight of 1,984 sites to cleanup approaches  outside the Superfund program, including 1,606 deferrals to states (47  percent of all eligible sites). State cleanup programs vary in their capacity and resources to manage  the cleanup of hazardous waste sites, according to EPA and state  officials. Forty- seven states address such sites under their own versions of the  Superfund program. DOD Is Responsible for Many Contaminated Sites, Including Over 80 Percent of Federal Facilities on the NPL

DOD is responsible for the majority of federal facilities on the NPL. Importantly, under the  executive order, DOD and the Department of Energy have authority to  clean up all of their NPL and other contaminated sites, while EPA has  authority for managing cleanup of other agencies’ NPL sites. As we noted in July 2010, across all environmental  cleanup and restoration activities at its installations, including NPL and  non-NPL sites, DOD spent almost $30 billion from 1986 to 2008. Our prior work has identified challenges stemming from the fact that DOD  has not always adhered to the CERCLA requirement to enter into  interagency agreements with EPA at NPL sites. Specifically, in July  2010, we reported that although CERCLA requires federal agencies to  enter into an interagency agreement with EPA to guide cleanup within a  certain period, as of February 2009, 11 DOD installations had not  signed such agreements after 10 or more years on the NPL. DOD has  made progress on this issue by decreasing the number of such  installations from 11 to 2, but both sites still pose significant risks. In  addition, we found that guidance for the Defense Environmental  Restoration Program—under which DOD conducts cleanup activities at its  installations—was silent regarding actions DOD should take in response  to these recommendations. The Federal Government Faces Liabilities from Abandoned Hardrock Mine Sites and Ensuring Adequate Financial Assurance for Liabilities from Current Mining Operations

Our previous work has found that hardrock mine sites present liabilities to  the federal government when they are abandoned or have inadequate  financial assurance. As we reported in March 2008, from 1997 to 2008, four federal  agencies—BLM, the Forest Service, EPA, and the Department of the  Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement—funded  the cleanup and reclamation of some of these abandoned hardrock mine  sites, spending at least $2.6 billion to reclaim abandoned hardrock mines  on federal, state, private, and American Indian lands. In addition, we have repeatedly reported that operators of hardrock mines  on BLM lands have not provided financial assurances sufficient to cover  estimated reclamation costs. Of these, we found that 57 hardrock operations  had inadequate financial assurances—about $24 million less than needed  to cover estimated reclamation costs. CERCLA and Other Environmental Statutes Involve Litigation among Numerous Parties

As the primary federal agency charged with implementing many of the  nation’s environmental laws, EPA often faces the prospect of litigation  over its regulations and other actions. In August 2011, we reported on environmental litigation and cases  against EPA across 10 environmental statutes filed for fiscal years 1995  to 2010. Of the approximately 2,500 cases we reviewed, about 5  percent of cases against EPA involved CERCLA. The largest category  comprised trade associations (25 percent), followed by private companies  (23 percent), local environmental groups and citizens’ groups (16  percent), and national environmental groups (14 percent). EPA may also initiate litigation against PRPs under CERCLA seeking to  compel these parties to clean up contaminated sites or to seek  reimbursement for cleanup EPA has conducted.
Why GAO Did This Study

According to EPA, the agency that manages the nation's principal hazardous waste cleanup program, one in four Americans lives within 3 miles of a hazardous waste site. Many such sites pose health and other risks, and their cleanup can be lengthy and expensive. EPA's Superfund program, established under CERCLA, provides a process to address contaminated sites. Under CERCLA, parties that contributed to the contamination of a site are generally liable for cleanup and related costs. These parties may include federal agencies, such as DOD, and companies. Based on the risk a site poses, EPA may place the site on the NPL, a list that includes some of the nation's most seriously contaminated sites. As of April 2013, the NPL included about 1,300 sites, and states and federal agencies may address additional contaminated sites outside of EPA's Superfund program. GAO's prior work has identified challenges cleaning up DOD's NPL sites and abandoned mining sites and has assessed litigation related to the Superfund program.
In this testimony, GAO summarizes its work from March 2008 to April 2013 on (1) the role of states in cleaning up hazardous waste sites, (2) DOD's management of its sites on the NPL, (3) federal liabilities from contaminated hardrock mining sites, and (4) litigation under CERCLA and other statutes.
GAO is not making new recommendations but has made numerous recommendations to DOD, EPA, and Interior to better address hazardous waste sites. As described in this statement, the responses to these recommendations have varied.

What GAO Found

States, in consultation with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), participate in the cleanup of hazardous waste sites in several ways. Under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, sites that meet certain risk thresholds are eligible for placement on the National Priorities List (NPL)--a list that includes some of the nation's most contaminated sites. In this context, states may notify EPA of potential hazardous waste sites, evaluate the health and environmental risks at sites being considered for the NPL, or oversee cleanups of NPL sites. In some cases, EPA may elect to defer sites that are eligible for the NPL to other federal or state cleanup programs. As GAO reported in April 2013, EPA had deferred to states the oversight of the cleanup of 47 percent of sites eligible for the NPL. GAO recommended that EPA provide guidance on the most common type of deferral to states, and EPA agreed with GAO's recommendation. In addition, 47 states have their own versions of the Superfund program.
As of April 2013, the Department of Defense (DOD) is responsible for cleanup at 129 NPL sites (over 80 percent of federal facilities on the NPL). In addition to its NPL sites, GAO reported in 2010 that DOD had over 50,000 areas that required cleanup and that the agency had spent almost $30 billion on cleanup from 1986 to 2008. In July 2010, GAO found that CERCLA requires federal agencies to enter into an interagency agreement with EPA to guide cleanup within a certain period but, as of February 2009, 11 DOD installations had not signed such agreements after 10 or more years on the NPL. DOD has made progress on this issue by decreasing the number of such installations from 11 to 2, but both sites still pose significant risks. GAO recommended that EPA pursue changes to a key executive order that would increase its authority to hasten cleanup at these sites. EPA agreed but has not taken action to have the executive order amended.
GAO's work has identified challenges and liabilities for the federal government stemming from hardrock mining operations, primarily at abandoned mines on federal land. In many cases, mine operators abandoned mines and did not have adequate financial assurance to pay for cleanup. As a result, the government may have to cover these costs. In 2011, GAO found that 57 hardrock mines on federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) had inadequate financial assurance to cover estimated reclamation costs and recommended that BLM improve its ability to evaluate the adequacy of financial assurances. In 2012, BLM reported implementing GAO's recommendation.
CERCLA and other major environmental statutes involve litigation among numerous parties. In addition to cases brought by EPA to enforce laws, litigation includes citizen suits to compel EPA to take action when it does not meet deadlines, and to question regulations and permitting decisions. In addition, potentially responsible parties at hazardous waste sites often file lawsuits against each other or EPA. In 2011, GAO found that about 5 percent of lawsuits against EPA for fiscal years 1995 to 2010 involved CERCLA and that, across 10 environmental statutes, trade associations and private companies comprised 48 percent of the litigants, followed by environmental groups (30 percent), nonfederal governments (12 percent), and other parties (10 percent).