Many of the country's most dangerous waste sites are located in areas vulnerable to flooding, sea-level rise, or wildfires. If a cleanup plan only accounts for historical weather patterns and ignores how climate change is making disasters more frequent or intense, a single major storm could breach a containment area and spread lead, arsenic, or other toxins into local water supplies and soil.

By making climate preparation a legal requirement, this bill aims to prevent environmental catastrophes before they happen. It also protects taxpayer money; without these rules, the government might spend millions on a cleanup that fails during the next big flood, requiring the entire expensive process to start all over again.