Summary: In response to a congressional request, GAO examined the circumstances that led a polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) handling firm to abandon PCB at two sites, focusing particularly on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) regulatory practices and enforcement efforts related to the abandonment.
GAO found that EPA: (1) has inadequate controls over PCB, particularly regarding headquarters oversight and guidance to regions; (2) lacks nationwide criteria for PCB disposal permits, since regional administrators are responsible for setting permit requirements without policy guidance from headquarters; (3) lacks adequate controls over PCB intermediate operators, which are potentially large handlers of PCB; and (4) lacks knowledge about the existence and operation of intermediate operators, which limits its ability to monitor them as part of its PCB enforcement and compliance program. GAO also found that, after an EPA inspector raised concerns about the large amounts of PCB that the firm was holding in excess of the 1-year storage limit, EPA fined the firm but failed to pursue practical corrective actions. GAO believes that such actions could have prevented the firm's abandonment of PCB.
