List includes San Jacinto Waste Pits site in Houston
DALLAS – (Dec. 8, 2017) Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released the list of Superfund sites that Administrator Pruitt has targeted for immediate and intense attention.
EPA Targets 21 Superfund Sites for Accelerated Action
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has identified 21 Superfund sites across the country, including the San Jacinto Waste Pits in Houston, Texas, for immediate and focused attention. These selections align with the Superfund Task Force Recommendations released earlier in the year, which emphasize the need for swift, decisive cleanup at the nation’s most pressing hazardous waste locations.
Prioritizing Health and Environmental Protection
In creating this initial list, the EPA selected sites where direct involvement from the Administrator could help drive meaningful progress. Each site includes defined actions aimed at reducing health risks and advancing environmental recovery. These sites require timely resolution of technical, legal, or planning challenges to speed up remediation and eventual reuse.
A Strategic, Flexible Approach
The list is designed to be dynamic. Sites may be added or removed depending on where the Administrator’s leadership and oversight are most needed. However, inclusion on the list does not guarantee additional funding. Rather, it signals a stronger emphasis on coordination, urgency, and accountability.
Commitment to All Superfund Communities
While these 21 locations receive elevated attention, the EPA remains fully committed to addressing health and environmental risks at all Superfund sites across the United States.
I mean not just those on the list. The Task Force Recommendations are aimed at expediting cleanup at all Superfund sites and Administrator Pruitt has set the expectation. Especially that there will be a renewed focus.
Accelerating Progress Nationwide
The EPA’s renewed focus on Superfund sites aims to accelerate cleanup and redevelopment efforts across the country—not just for the 21 prioritized locations. This broader push stems from the agency’s commitment to improving environmental outcomes, restoring community health, and turning blighted properties into productive assets.
Guiding Vision from the Superfund Task Force
The Superfund Task Force, which continues to guide these efforts, has outlined five core goals to drive long-term impact:
- Expedite cleanup and remediation to reduce health and environmental risks more quickly.
- Reinvigorate cleanup and reuse efforts by holding potentially responsible parties accountable.
- Encourage private sector investment to help fund and facilitate site restoration.
- Promote redevelopment and community revitalization so that formerly contaminated sites support local economies.
- Engage with stakeholders and community partners to ensure transparency, collaboration, and shared success.
Ongoing Transparency and Accountability
As part of its mission, the Task Force will continue to provide regular public updates. These progress reports aim to keep communities informed while holding federal agencies, contractors, and private stakeholders accountable for results.
Especially as it makes progress. All on the Administrator’s Emphasis list and other Task Force activities.
Background on the San Jacinto Waste Pits Superfund Site
The EPA added the San Jacinto Waste Pits site in Houston, Texas, to the National Priorities List in 2008, following tests that confirmed high levels of contamination from dioxins and furans in the surrounding environment. The site includes two sets of impoundments—commonly referred to as waste pits—originally constructed in the mid-1960s.
These pits were used to dispose of both solid and liquid waste generated by nearby pulp and paper mills. Specifically, they contain hazardous substances including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (dioxins) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (furans)—both highly toxic and persistent in the environment.
The EPA serves as the lead agency responsible for managing the investigation and cleanup of the site. The agency oversees efforts to ensure that the potentially responsible party (PRP) carries out remediation in accordance with federal standards. In addition, the EPA is working in collaboration with state environmental agencies and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to implement and enforce the cleanup strategy.
In conclusion and for more information about the site is online. For it’s available at https://www.epa.gov/tx/sjrwp
Finally, connect with EPA Region 6:
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eparegion6
Activities in EPA Region 6: http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-6-south-central
