Murray Outraged that EPA Won't Fund Spokane River Superfund Cleanup

Murray Outraged That EPA Won't Fund Spokane River Superfund Cleanup

"It is deeply troubling that the EPA has chosen not to fund cleanup efforts in Washington state, despite the contamination of our water and our soil. It is outrageous that EPA is going to fund cleanup for the same project on the Idaho side of the border, but ignore the Washington sites. EPA's own Record of Decision in 2002 declared that the Washington sites 'have been identified for cleanup on the basis of potential human and ecological risk.'

The men, women and children who live in Eastern Washington deserve to live in a healthy, clean environment. It is tragic that the EPA won't commit the resources to make this happen.

The problem, according to the EPA, is that the Superfund account is inadequate to clean up all of the necessary sites. The solution is to reinstate the Superfund tax.

The Superfund tax was established to make certain that polluters, not taxpayers, are held accountable to clean up toxic waste.

Unfortunately, there are some who oppose reinstating the Superfund tax. Apparently, they would prefer to let the polluters off the hook, stick taxpayers with the bill, and indefinitely delay the Spokane River cleanup."