Controversial cleanup: Superfund and the implementation of US hazardous waste policy

While there is widespread public and political support for cleaning up the nation's hazardous waste sites, Superfund has been fraught with dissension and controversy since its inception. Some criticisms of the program focus o n deriding an all-too-expensive program run amuck with litigation and feder al heavy-handedness. Other critics complain of an inefficient and ineffecti ve program that has mode painfully slow and inconsistent progress. Detracto rs do not disagree with the fundamental goal of the program-cleaning up haz ardous waste sites. Rather, they focus on the fairness of Superfund's liabi lity provisions and the Environmental Protection Agency's record of cleanup competency. This paper discusses these major issues at the core of the con troversy over Superfund. The policy implications of Superfund program refor m efforts and the ramifications for future hazardous waste policy are consi dered.