What is the main purpose of a Superfund?

The main purpose of a Superfund is to clean up hazardous waste when no one accepts responsibility. This initiative, established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in 1980, addresses uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites and allows the federal government to take action when responsible parties are unable or unwilling to clean up the sites.

Superfund provides a mechanism to assess sites, facilitate clean-up operations, and manage contaminated land to protect public health and the environment. It funds efforts to cleanup sites through a trust fund, particularly when no viable party can be located, or when the responsible parties lack the necessary financial means to handle the cleanup, ultimately ensuring that dangerous conditions can be remedied irrespective of the ownership or responsibility.

Other choices involve areas that do not align with the fundamental goals of the Superfund program. For instance, tax relief for property owners, financing new development projects, and regulating commercial zoning laws are not the focus areas of Superfund activities. The program specifically targets hazardous waste management and remediation, making the cleanup of hazardous waste the central objective.