CERCLA's Equitable Allocation of Liability

Imagine this scenario. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency identifies a polluted, historically industrial-use waterway in Tacoma, Wash., and designates it as a part of a larger federal Superfund site.

Over a decade later, the United States sues a host of potentially responsible parties that had former or current operations along the waterway, including the Port of Tacoma.

These responsible parties quickly agree to settle with the government by a consent decree to incur costs of performing a cleanup of the site.

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