WASHINGTON (11/25/05) -- According to annual data released this week by the U.S. EPA, the Superfund Program continues to make significant progress in cleaning up America's contaminated sites.

The annual summary confirms that in Fiscal Year 2005 the EPA completed work at 40 sites, for a cumulative total of 966 sites with work completed -- 62 percent of the top priority sites ranked on the National Priorities List. EPA conducted 665 ongoing cleanup projects at 422 sites (includes projects led by EPA, projects led by potentially responsible parties and federal facility sites). EPA funded new work at 17 projects across the country. Superfund also continued to prepare for future cleanup efforts by listing 18 new sites and proposing 12 sites to be added to the NPL. 

EPA conducted or oversaw more than 400 emergency response and removal actions to address immediate and substantial threats to communities, cleaning up spills and accidental releases of hazardous material.

"EPA continues to make progress in cleaning up the nation's most contaminated sites. We give top priority to cleaning up sites that pose the greatest risk to human health and to the environment," said Thomas P. Dunne, EPA's acting assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. 

The FY 05 Superfund National Accomplishments Summary is available online.