Federal Sites

The Federal Site Remediation Section (FSRS) is involved in oversight and implementation  of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (CERCLA or Superfund) program in Illinois.  CERCLA sites in Illinois range in size from five to more than 40,000 acres, and include closed and active Federal Facilities, Formerly Used Defense Sites, sites listed on the National Priorities List, and Superfund alternative sites. Examples of CERCLA sites include abandoned hazardous waste disposal areas, former mines, landfills, areas with releases of industrial waste, unexploded ordnance, fuel contamination, or a variety of other hazardous substances which present an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment. These sites are some of the largest and most contaminated properties in the State of Illinois.

Cleanup of these properties requires coordination between the FSRS and other sections of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA), as well as the United States Environmental Protection Agency, (U.S. EPA) the Department of Defense (DoD) military departments, and local communities. FSRS leadership manages the sites to ensure this coordination is maintained at all stages of the process. The FSRS is located within the Illinois EPA's Bureau of Land, Division of Remediation Management and is composed of ten project managers in two units. 

Superfund in Illinois

The FSRS oversees the cleanup of sites listed on the NPL and other sites subject to CERCLA.  Nationally, as of 2024, there are 1,178 sites on the NPL, with 448 delisted and 43 proposed for addition.  In Illinois, there are 70 CERCLA regulated sites. Of these 70 sites, 46 are listed on the NPL, three have been proposed to the NPL but not yet added, and fourteen are considered NPL alternative sites. Seven sites have been de-listed, with three-more partially de-listed. Given the multiple government agencies engaged with a cleanup, one agency takes on the mantle of the Lead Agency, and the other is designated as the Support Agency. The lead agency is typically the senior agency, responsible for initiating, developing, and selecting response actions. The support agency provides data, reviews the responses to documents, and generally assists the lead agency.

Typically, the relationship between the agencies is codified in a cooperative agreement. The FSRS works with U.S. EPA Region 5 through a Superfund Memorandum of Agreement (SMOA), which defines the roles and responsibilities for the State and Federal agencies involved in the cleanup.

Superfund cleanups on Department of Defense (DOD) sites have an added layer of complexity, being regulated through the Defense and State Memorandum of Agreement (DSMOA) Program. DSMOA was established to facilitate cleanups at DOD sites, similar to how the SMOA facilitates cleanup between federal and state EPA.

Much of the original Superfund law gives authority over the CERCLA program to the president of the United States. Executive Order (E.O.) 12580 delegates the president’s responsibilities in CERCLA and SARA to various federal agencies.

Illinois EPA Bureau of Land                                      
Federal Site Remediation Section                                      
Paul Lake, Manager
2520 W Iles Ave                                     
P.O. Box 19276                                      
Springfield, IL 62794-9276                                      
Phone: 217-785-7728