New Tax Proposal Could Help Put The Fund in Superfund

The biggest problem with Superfund designation of the Gowanus Canal (which we were in favor of) stems from the availability and speed of funding to pay for the program. Opponents were quick to (correctly) point out that the funding would ultimately come from adjoining property owners, who collectively branded as "the taxpayers". What they also conveniently forgot to mention is that the property owners responsible for cleanup are also those responsible for the mess.

In any case, a new proposal is making it's way around which would pay for Superfund cleanup with a tax on current polluting industries, such as oil and gas. From American Public Media (NPR's Marketplace; download the mp3 here):

"...when Republicans took control of Congress in 1995, they did away with a tax on the petrochemical industry that funded the clean-up of almost half of all Superfund sites. These were sites where nobody accepted responsibility for the contamination. Funding for these projects dried up seven years ago. Since then, taxpayers have had to pick up the tab."

In the current national political climate, I doubt that the implementation of a new tax, even one on an industry with such deep pockets who have the public's wrath right now, would be received well, however anything that cleans up the canal can't be a bad thing. I do question the rationale of seeking funding from current gas and oil companies though; isn't a large point of the Superfund program to go after past polluters as well?