What federal law imposes a tax on the chemical and petroleum industries and establishes liability for environmental issues?

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as Superfund, is the federal law that imposes a tax on the chemical and petroleum industries and establishes liability for environmental issues. This law was enacted in 1980 to provide a federal response to incidents of hazardous substance releases, ensuring that responsible parties are held accountable for cleanup costs. It established the Superfund program, which enables the federal government to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances and recover these costs from responsible parties through a tax on certain industries, particularly those in the chemical and petroleum sectors. This mechanism encourages companies to manage their waste responsibly to avoid liability and taxes associated with environmental cleanup.

The other options listed serve different purposes in environmental law. The National Environmental Policy Act primarily deals with environmental assessment processes for federal projects. The Clean Water Act focuses on regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States and sets quality standards for surface waters. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act governs the disposal of solid and hazardous waste. Each of these laws plays a vital role in environmental protection but does not specifically address the tax on chemical and petroleum industries or establish liability in the same way CERCLA does.