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Recommended: General essay on pollution
Who Is Responsible For Cleanup Under CERCLA?
What is CERCLA? The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act ( CERCLA )
1) The purpose of CERCLA is to make owners and operators of hazardous waste dump sites and contaminated areas, as well as their customers, responsible for cleanup costs and property damage. 2) CERCLA is also referred to as THE
SUPERFUND. It is authorized to a level of 8.5 billion dollars. The funding for
CERCLA comes 87% from taxes on the chemical industry and 13% from general revenues of the federal government.
Who is responsible?
After a hazardous waste site is identified, CERCLA places ultimate cleanup responsibility on those who used the site. Parties responsible for a waste dump are liable for the cost of waste removal and other remedial action.
If potentially responsible parties can be identified, then they can be held liable for either cleanup costs incurred, or for replenishment of the
Superfund.
Who is a Potentially Responsible Party?
1.) Owners and operators of waste sites.
i) CERCLA actions against dissolved corporations are permissible
ii) If one is the owner or operator, liability may attach even if some other party in the past placed hazardous wastes there. ( The seller of a foundry was found liable under CERCLA when it was sold for $25,000, but was appraised at
$200,000, suggesting the decision to sell was for disposal of hazardous materials.) A vendor is not an owner if it did not own the property at the time of toxic discharge from the facility.
iii) A parent company may be considered the owner, despite the formation of a subsidiary with day to day control over operations.
iv) Lenders and secured creditors are liable if they actively participate in decisions involving either waste treatment, or site development. They are not liable if they do not participate in management decisions. (silent partners and banks) v) An owner, employer, or waste generator may be liable for the harmful consequences of disposal practices undertaken by third parties in a contractual relationship with it. ( If I hire Fly-By-Night Disposal Corp. to dispose of my waste and they do so by dumping it in the river, then I may be liable.)
2.)Persons who accepted hazardous substances for transport or disposal.
3.)Persons who arranged with a transporter for transportation of wastes.
4.)Any person who arranged for disposal or treatment of hazardous substances.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Quality Engineering took ground water samples that showed volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) in the supply well. This well was formerly used for drinking water for the community. The results indicated that the ground water beneath the property was contaminated with radioactive material and VOCs. A sphagnum bog on the grounds had evidence of radioactive contamination. The soil, sediment, surface water, and ground water on the site had high levels of depleted uranium. On some of the soil and sediments, Poly Chlorinated Bi-phenyls were recorded. The buildings and structures on the grounds were as well contaminated with depleted uranium and other hazardous substances.
Cross, Frank B., and Roger LeRoy Miller. "Ch. 13: Strict Liability and Product Liability." The legal environment of business: text and cases, 8th edition. Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning Custom Solutions, 2012. 294-297. Print.
Throughout this mining process, a byproduct is created called chat. The chat is leftover rock and waste from mining that did not contain the desired materials. The chat was left on the site because the Bureau of Indian Affairs thought it could be of value to the Quapaw tribe (1). This product contains high levels of toxic lead and other harmful chemicals. It is estimated that there are 75 million tons (150 billion pounds) of chat piles remaining exposed to the environment as well as numerous flotation ponds that haven’t been taken into account (4).
Texting and Driving has been a huge factor in accidents. More and more cities are starting to make cell phone use illegal to prevent many life threatening accidents. A phone call and text message can wait. You never know as drivers what the people are doing around you are doing unless you are watching your surroundings. The driver might be a really good driver and might be paying some attention to the road while you are on your phone but the road needs all of the drivers attention so that prevention of accidents is at its
One day Chandler Gerber 23, of Bluffton collided with an Amish buggy back in April of 2012. A three year old boy and a five year old girl were killed. A 17 year old boy who was in critical condition died several days later. Chandler was sending a text that said “ I love you” to his wife when he caused the accident. Drivers who were texting were 23.2 times more likely to crash to those who weren’t texting (Cell Phones and Texting). The increasing amount of crashes caused from texting and driving and growing and becoming more of a problem. Distracted driving is an increasing problem in the United States resulting in many accidents, but a solution to the problem would be banning cellphones while driving.
... structure to encapsulation the property. The federal government would pay 90 percent of the cost, with the state picking up the other 10. Given the hazardous nature of the waste and the threats to human health and the environment, this process should begin immediately.
It is important to realize that this situation was very unusual to the local residents, because the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADM) cleared the landfill to proceed, fully aware
Texting and driving is a deadly issue in today 's generation. Using our cellphones while driving is a damaging habit among teens and adults. This habit caused many catastrophic accidents and deaths. Texting while driving has made the roads unsafe for other drivers. Many states recognize the immense threat resulting from texting and driving and have placed a ban on this epidemic. While many people realize texting and driving is hazardous others believe that the ban is useless and not strong enough of a solution.
value of that property to be much lower. Since the property was a dilapidated building in a bad
Cell phones now has been known to kill thousands of people. Lately there has not been a day where there is no accident, death or injury due to someone driving while using their cell phone. On May 17th, 2013, fox 4 news “teen dies in accident while texting”. Fox9.com “police: Byron teen killed in crash on first day of school was texting”. CBS 6 news “Girl’s heartbreaking story will make you think twice before texting while driving”. These were just 3 examples of how texting and driving could be so dangerous, yet we chose to ignore it. Over the past years there have been way too many innocent people that are losing their lives due to the reckless drivers that are around. Drivers must give a 100% of their attention to the road. We are living in an era where technology has been taking over our
Now a days everyone is glued to their phones, constantly checking their emails, facebooking, snapchatting and texting. With all the devices people have and interact with on a day to day basis, there seems to be a lack of knowledge on how dangerous these devices really are. A report done by the AAA traffic safety foundation showed that “Each year, more than 80% of drivers in the annual AAA Foundation Traffic Safety Culture Index cite distraction as a serious problem and a behavior that makes them feel less safe on the road.” With the limited hours of free time during the day, people are using driving time to check emails and make phone calls which is inflicting on the safety of everyone around them. Texting and driving needs to be a thing of
Chapter 19. p413. John G.Fleming [4] P419. Textbook on Torts 8th edition. Michael A.Jones [5] Vicarious Liability for Employers. Andrew Scott-Howman.
Satarkar, A. (2008). Hazardous waste control. In Guidelines of environmental pollution and control (pp. 275-283). India: ABD Publishers.
“28% of all car accidents are caused by people distracted by cell phones. The 2006 University of Utah did a study on this called “A Comparison of the Cell Phone Driver, and The Drunk Driver”, which showed that people who talk on the phone while driving are as impaired as drivers with a blood alcohol level of 0.08%.” We see more and more accidents involving teens who had been texting, and driving. It’s so easy to get distracted by these small devices, and we don’t realize how dangerous this can really be. I catch myself on a daily glancing down at my phone while behind the wheel, and not even realizing it until I have to slam my breaks so I don 't hit the person in front of me. It happens to all of us. We as people, really need to realize the dangerous effects of texting while driving, and also realize that whatever it may be can wait. Wait until you have completely stopped, or reached your destination before grabbing up the cell phone. It will save yourself, and it will also help protect other drivers around you. Some more fascinating health risks related to cell phones is the risks of cancer, and others also believe that over-using cell phones can lead to high blood pressure and
...or lakes (Weber 2). When people just dump waste products instead of recycling, it is a misuse of the soil and can contribute to serious health conditions in animals, plants and humans.