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Open Recommendations

Nuclear Waste Cleanup: DOE Should Use Available Information to Measure the Effectiveness of Its Groundwater Efforts
GAO-25-106938
Nov 19, 2024
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management should ensure that EM headquarters collects and uses comprehensive information on groundwater cleanup scope, cost, and schedule for all EM sites to enhance technical and policy support provided to sites and inform resource allocation decisions. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management should establish groundwater cleanup strategic objectives and near-term performance goals for groundwater cleanup that cover all sites and more specifically guide sites' progress in meeting the groundwater cleanup requirements. (Recommendation 2)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management should develop and use performance metrics to regularly inform groundwater cleanup decisions and document progress toward cleanup goals. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Hazardous Waste: EPA Should Take Additional Actions to Encourage Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities to Manage Climate Risks
GAO-25-106253
Nov 14, 2024
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9 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Land and Emergency Management should develop and provide training and technical assistance to help EPA regions and authorized states implement recent guidance on using existing authorities and requirements to manage climate risks to TSDFs. (Recommendation 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Land and Emergency Management should use its upcoming rulemaking to seek feedback from authorized states, TSDFs, and other stakeholders to assess whether its recent guidance is sufficient or revising regulations would be necessary to clarify requirements for managing climate risks to TSDFs. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance should issue guidance to clarify RCRA authorities and requirements for managing climate risks to TSDFs as part of authorized states' and EPA regions' RCRA compliance and enforcement efforts. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Land and Emergency Management, in consultation with EPA regional offices, should develop and implement monitoring metrics and assess whether and how authorized states and TSDFs are managing climate risks to TSDFs in RCRA permitting and oversight efforts. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, in consultation with EPA regional offices, should develop and implement monitoring metrics and assess whether and how authorized states and TSDFs are managing climate risks to TSDFs in RCRA compliance monitoring and enforcement efforts. (Recommendation 5)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Land and Emergency Management, together with other relevant EPA offices and EPA regions, should assess the current RCRA TSDF standards and requirements to determine if they will be sufficient to manage climate risks and, if one or more of them need to be updated to ensure they remain protective of human health and the environment, develop a plan for any revisions or updates. (Recommendation 6)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Persistent Chemicals: Additional EPA Actions Could Help Public Water Systems Address PFAS in Drinking Water
GAO-24-106523
Sep 24, 2024
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Environmental Protection Agency The Administrator of EPA should publish a Small Entity Compliance Guide for the PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation as soon as is feasible, to best support small public water systems preparing to comply with the PFAS maximum contaminant levels by April 2029. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of EPA's Office of Water should, in consultation with partners from Tribes, states, regional offices, and outside organizations, identify barriers public water systems experience obtaining federal funding to address PFAS contamination and assess how best to disseminate information on such funding potentially available to these systems. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrator of EPA's Office of Water should establish a time frame for issuing additional planned resources—such as fact sheets and templates—to help public water systems communicate with customers about PFAS health risks. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Assistant Administrators of EPA's Office of Water and Office of Land and Emergency Management should summarize and consolidate existing regulations, policy, and guidance relevant to the disposal of PFAS-contaminated waste into a straightforward resource for public water systems. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Oil and Gas: Interior Urgently Needs Leadership and Oversight to Address IT System Development Failure
GAO-24-107223
Sep 10, 2024
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of the Interior The Secretary of the Interior should direct Interior's CIO to ensure its new IT investment baseline management policy meets OMB requirements and strengthens internal controls to ensure baselines are approved by appropriate milestones. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of the Interior The Secretary of the Interior should direct Interior's CIO to strengthen IT leadership and oversight by implementing leading practices in executive-level IT governance for major IT investments including the AFMSS 2 replacement. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Bureau of Land Management The Director of BLM should document concurrence from Interior's CIO that BLM is implementing policies and procedures for developing IT systems, including the AFMSS 2 replacement, that are in alignment with the CIO's direction. Such policies and procedures should include that root cause analyses and corrective action plans are completed for projects that exceed established cost, schedule, and performance thresholds. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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