The Nation - News from June 16, 1986

Almost half of the federal installations handling toxic wastes were found to be violating federal hazardous waste laws when inspected, congressional investigators said in a report. An investigation carried out by the General Accounting Office found that 71% of installations examined had not been inspected by state authorities or the Environmental Protection Agency, and of those that had been checked, 46% were violating requirements of the Resources Conservation and Recovery Act. GAO investigators last year looked at the activities of 247 installations of 17 civilian agencies handling hazardous wastes in 12 states. Investigators found that 10 federal agencies had provided little or no guidance on hazardous waste disposal.