Relative Risk in Superfund
RCED-94-233R: Published: Jun 17, 1994. Publicly Released: Jun 17, 1994.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Superfund Program, focusing on whether the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prioritizes hazardous waste sites by their health risks. GAO noted that: (1) EPA headquarters leaves prioritizing to its regions which have not implemented the worst-sites-first policy; (2) EPA regions base their decisions for including sites on the National Priorities List (NPL) on nonrisk factors and do not use risk as a criterion for selecting NPL sites for priority cleanup; (3) the Hazard Ranking System's scores for contaminated sites are often incomplete and cannot be used to prioritize remedial work, since regions evaluate sites only as far as is necessary to determine if they should be included on NPL; (4) the worst hazardous sites may not be included in the Superfund program because EPA relies on states to report on their hazardous sites; and (5) some states clean up the most contaminated sites themselves without informing EPA to avoid the program delays.
Oct 6, 2020
Federal Oil and Gas Revenue:
Actions Needed to Improve BLM's Royalty Relief PolicyGAO-21-169T: Published: Oct 6, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 6, 2020.
Sep 23, 2020
-
Gas Transmission Pipelines:
Interstate Transportation of Natural Gas Is Generally Reliable, but FERC Should Better Identify and Assess Emerging RisksGAO-20-658: Published: Sep 23, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 23, 2020.
Aug 6, 2020
-
Natural Gas Exports:
Updated Guidance and Regulations Could Improve Facility Permitting ProcessesGAO-20-619: Published: Aug 6, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 6, 2020.
Aug 5, 2020
-
Climate Change:
A Climate Migration Pilot Program Could Enhance the Nation's Resilience and Reduce Federal Fiscal ExposureGAO-20-488: Published: Jul 6, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 5, 2020.
Jul 23, 2020
-
Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Plan:
Improved Communication and Adaptive Management Strategy Could Help Address Stakeholder ConcernsGAO-20-529: Published: Jul 23, 2020. Publicly Released: Jul 23, 2020.
Jul 14, 2020
-
Social Cost of Carbon:
Identifying a Federal Entity to Address the National Academies' Recommendations Could Strengthen Regulatory AnalysisGAO-20-254: Published: Jun 23, 2020. Publicly Released: Jul 14, 2020.
Jun 25, 2020
-
National Flood Insurance Program:
Fiscal Exposure Persists Despite Property AcquisitionsGAO-20-509: Published: Jun 25, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 25, 2020. -
Mining on Federal Lands:
More Than 800 Operations Authorized to Mine and Total Mineral Production Is UnknownGAO-20-461R: Published: May 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 25, 2020. -
Supplemental Material for GAO-20-461R:
Data on Solid Mineral Operations on Federal LandsGAO-20-520SP: Published: May 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 25, 2020.
May 29, 2020
-
Wildfire:
Information on Forest Service Response, Key Concerns, and Effects of the Chetco Bar FireGAO-20-424: Published: Apr 29, 2020. Publicly Released: May 29, 2020.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here
Explore our Key Issues on Natural Resources and Environment
- Air Quality
- Climate Change Funding and Management
- Climate Change Response
- Department of Energy's Contract Management for the National Nuclear Security Administration and Office of Environmental Management - High Risk Issue
- Economic Sanctions
- Electricity Markets, Grid Security and Resilience
- Energy Management in DOD Facilities
- Farm Programs
- Hardrock Mining on Federal Lands
- Limiting the Federal Government's Fiscal Exposure by Better Managing Climate Change Risks - High Risk Issue
- Management of Federal Oil and Gas Resources - High Risk Issue
- Managing Federal Lands and Waters
- National Flood Insurance Program - High Risk Issue
- Native American Issues
- Nuclear Energy
- Nuclear Waste Disposal
- Oil, Natural Gas, and Alternative Fuels
- Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
- Toxic Chemicals - High Risk Issue
- Understanding Climate Change
- U.S. Arctic Interests
- U.S. Government's Environmental Liability - High Risk Issue
- Water Quality
- Wildland Fire Management
Explore our other Key Issues here
