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ECONOMIC, LEGAL, AND PRACTICAL PROBLEMS IN HAZARDOUS WASTE 179 CLEANUP AND MANAGEMENT original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. of laboratory samples. The turnaround time for EPA can be as long as six months. The average is about one month for our own lab. The department is preparing for construction of a new laboratory complex at its Tallahassee headquarters to shorten the time lag. Another problem is the length of time required to begin long-term remedial action. Superfund sites are tested and studied for an average of two and one-half years before they reach the cleanup stage. We are hopeful that as EPA management gains stability, the complex Superfund program will mature properly. However, immediate removal actions by EPA at American Creosote in Pensacola, Tri-City Oil in Tampa, and Pepper Steel and Alloys in Miami have shown that work is under way to lessen threats posed to the environment and the public by hazardous waste. More than $6 million in federal funds have been spent in Florida on immediate removals, remedial investigations, and feasibility studies at 14 of the state's 37 Superfund sites. A total of 63 hazardous waste sites in Florida are undergoing physical cleanup. Recovery of petroleum contaminants is under way at another 48 sites in Florida and has been completed at 37 more. HAZARDOUS AND INDUSTRIAL WASTE ENFORCEMENT Only 65 percent of the hazardous and industrial waste sources in Florida are in compliance with pertinent state and federal regulations. We would like to achieve at least a 90 percent compliance rate. The public will never have confidence in us if we are incapable of enforcing the law. In addition, new amendments to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) require that small-quantity generators be regulated (Section 221 of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984). This increases the size of the regulated public tenfold on the national level. EPA estimates that some 650,000 small- quantity generators nationwide will fall under the new regulations. The governor of Florida recommended to the state legislature more hazardous waste and industrial waste enforcement personnel to increase compliance with the state's laws. We requested and have received additional enforcement positions for hazardous and industrial waste to pursue increased enforcement action and raise the compliance rate. PROSPECTS FOR LONG-TERM MANAGEMENT Because of the threats to Florida's environment posed by improper disposal of hazardous waste, Florida needs a network for proper waste management. The DER is in the process of learning how much and what types of
