Hazardous Waste

A number of factors have affected the Defense Department's (DOD) ability to develop a reliable estimate of how much it will cost to clean up its hazardous waste sites. These factors include the following: (1) not all the sites that DOD may ultimately have to clean up have been identified; (2) studies to identify the contaminants in the sites have not been finished; (3) some installations will now require more extensive cleanup than anticipated; and (4) the timing of the cleanup is unknown and the longer it takes DOD to begin the cleanup, the higher the cost could be. In developing its latest cost estimate of $24.5 billion, DOD has actively involved the services and has used historical costs rather than projections. Because DOD is still assessing the cleanup required and is identifying more sites, however, future DOD estimates may be even higher.

GAO found that: (1) factors that affect DOD ability to develop reliable estimates of how much it will cost to clean up its hazardous waste sites include unidentified clean-up sites, incomplete contamination studies, unanticipated clean-up costs, and undetermined cleanup times; (2) in 1985, DOD estimated that the costs for assessment, study, and potential cleanup of 400 to 800 sites ranged from $5 to $10 billion; (3) in 1989, DOD estimated that its potential clean-up costs for about 7,100 sites ranged from $4.2 billion to $42.2 billion, depending on the technology needed for remedial actions; (4) although DOD based its 1985 estimates on limited study and research, it produced its 1989 estimate to examine available clean-up options; (5) in the past, DOD either based its estimates on projected clean-up costs of individual sites or updated previous estimates; and (6) DOD used study and cleanup experiences, historical costs, and the military services' input in developing its most recent estimate of $24.2 billion.