Sites with radioactive material more vulnerable as climate change increases wildfire, flood risks
Climate climate change increasingly threatens research laboratories, weapons sites and power plants across the nation that handle or are contaminated with radioactive material or perform critical energy and defense research. The Department of Energy recently required existing sites to assess vulnerability to fires, floods and other disasters. Now the agency division that oversees active sites will decide how to consider future climate risks when issuing permits or licenses. The General Accounting Office is urging the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to do the same for nuclear power plants.