Superfund Reauthorization: A More Modest Proposal
Editors' Summary: For over three years, Congress has been trying to reauthorize and revise CERCLA. Reauthorization bills introduced in the 103d, 104th, and 105th Congresses have proposed extensive changes intended to "fix" a program that many people consider to be "broken." In this Article, an Assistant Attorney General for Natural Resources in the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General suggests that the Superfund program is not as flawed as its critics charge. He argues that the statute only needs some fine-tuning.
The Article begins with an overview of CERCLA that focuses on the features of the program that critics say need fixing. The author reviews the elements of the statute's liability scheme, its provisions for response actions and cleanup standards, the role afforded states and communities, and the statute's provision for restoration or replacement of injured natural resources. He then examines the perception that the program is broken, and analyzes the bills that have been introduced to correct the program's perceived problems. Finally, he proposes statutory changes of his own that would address existing problems without making major revisions to the law.