FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         ENR
THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 1997                           (202) 514-2008
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

                                 
     APPEALS COURT UPHOLDS CONSTITUTIONALITY OF SUPERFUND LAW
                                                                 
     WASHINGTON, DC -- On Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals in
Atlanta, upheld the constitutionality of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA),
commonly known as Superfund.  The ruling overturned a lower court
decision in U.S. v. Olin.  In that case, the District Court judge
ruled that Congress lacked authority under the Commerce Clause to
enact the statute and that polluters could not be held liable for
actions which occurred prior to the 1980 enactment of Superfund. 
Before the district court decision in the Olin case, every court
that considered similar arguments has rejected them.  Since the
Olin decision, similar arguments have been raised and rejected in
more than a dozen other cases. 
 
     Lois J. Schiffer, Assistant Attorney General for the
Environment and Natural Resources Division, argued the case before
the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in October 1996.  Schiffer
issued the following statement today in response to the favorable
ruling:
     "This is good news for millions of Americans whose lives and
     health are threatened by hazardous waste sites.  The Court
     ruled that Superfund is constitutional and that polluters can
     be held responsible for the waste they dumped before 1980. 
     With this ruling we can continue our commitment to faster,
     fairer and more efficient cleanups in every area of the
     country."  


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