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EPA AND DELAWARE SIGN SUPERFUND AGREEMENT - FIRST IN THE COUNTRY UNDER NEW INITIATIVE

Release Date: 6/4/1999
Contact Information: Kenneth R. Kyyszczun (215) 814-3311

PHILADELPHIA - The State of Delaware and EPA have signed a one-year pilot Superfund agreement which gives Delaware the ability to accelerate its assessment of suspected hazardous waste sites.

This is a prototype agreement, the first that EPA has signed to enhance the role of a state in the Superfund program. The agreement will not require additional funding since Delaware can use its existing grant from the EPA to perform the work. By this agreement, EPA acknowledges that Delaware has the experience and capability to perform site assessments meeting federal guidelines.

W. Michael McCabe, EPA regional administrator said, "This partnership agreement between EPA and Delaware will shorten the time it takes to evaluate hazardous waste problems in the state."

Nicholas A. DiPasquale, Secretary of Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), commented, "This agreement with EPA will give Delaware the authority and flexibility to assess the most serious hazardous waste sites as soon as they are discovered."

Delaware, through DNREC, provides support to EPA efforts to remediate sites on the National Priorities List. Delaware has a well established site assessment program and conducts preliminary assessments, site inspections, and Brownfields preliminary assessments under it’s pre-remedial cooperative agreement grant. Delaware has built a substantial infrastructure, including a fully equipped mobile laboratory, site tracking system and an electronic document management system.

This agreement reverses the usual roles in Superfund site assessments, with EPA assigning its customary lead role to the state, and assuming the state’s usual role of This agreement reverses the usual roles in Superfund site assessments, with EPA assigning its customary lead role to the state, and assuming the state’s usual role of providing support. EPA will retain its enforcement authority for any sites requiring federal cleanup.

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