EPA Region 4 & 6 Superfund report

ATLANTA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is releasing Superfund’s annual report covering major accomplishments and environmental progress throughout FY 2018. The Superfund program is a top priority for EPA and is making strides to accelerate sites through remediation and back to productive use. In the report, communities across the country are benefitting from these efforts. “We are proud to report that in Fiscal Year 2018 EPA deleted all or part of 22 sites from the National Priorities List (NPL), the largest number of deletions in one year since 2005,” EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in a media release, and revitalizing communities across the country. EPA is “proud of the progress we have made in cleaning up Superfund sites across the Southeast” in Regions 4 and 6, said EPA Acting Region 4 Administrator Mary S. Walker. Region 4 includes the Gulf Coast states of Alabama, Florida and Mississippi. Region 6 includes Louisiana. Region 4 is stepping up efforts to return sites to productive use and deleting sites from the NPL: Davis Timber Co. of Hattiesburg, Miss. In Region 6, the Bayou Bonfouca site in Slidell, La., formerly contaminated with waste from a wood-treating plant, is now a hub for civic activity with municipal services departments, Heritage Park, a public boat launch, and a state-of-the-art marina. Region 4 milestones include identifying sites for expedited cleanup: Mississippi Phosphates Corp. of Pascagoula, Miss. New FY-18 NPL sites: American Creosote (DeRidder, La.) and Rockwell International Wheel & Trim (Grenada, Miss.). (Source: EPA 03/04/19)