In 2004, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) appropriation for the Superfund program was almost $1.3 billion dollars. Over the course of your second administration, we can expect government to spend an additional $5.2 billion.

Mr. President, for the integrity of the program and for the public interest, I recommend that your administration conduct a thorough evaluation of the current allocation of resources within the Superfund program.

Based on that evaluation, your administration can recommend which expenditures are truly necessary for the successful implementation of the program and determine where a redeployment of resources--in both staff and dollars--might better ensure that we accomplish the central goal of Superfund--that is, thorough and expeditious cleanups of sites across the nation that are contaminated with hazardous substances.

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This "zero-based budgeting" approach must be conducted by people who are knowledgeable about the various components of the Superfund program but whose budgets will not be affected by the outcome of the evaluation. It is critical that the evaluation not become an excuse for dismantling the program but truly be aimed at how to best deploy limited resources to achieve the goals of the program--cleaning up contaminated sites and protecting public health.

Katherine N. Probst focuses her research on the costs and implementation of the Superfund program. She has also examined the management of long-term risks at sites in the nuclear weapons complex. She is lead author of Superfund's Future: What Will It Cost?

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