Nearly 100 of America’s most hazardous toxic waste sites are situated in areas highly susceptible to flooding and wildfires, posing a significant public health threat to millions of nearby residents, a new report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s internal watchdog reveals.
Last week, the EPA’s Office of Inspector General (IG) issued reports detailing climate-related vulnerabilities at 157 federal Superfund sites. Prioritized for cleanup due to severe public health and environmental risks, these sites are located near millions: 3 million Americans live within a mile, and 13 million within three miles (4.8 kilometers).
Many Superfund sites face multiple disaster threats: 49 coastal sites are vulnerable to sea-level rise or hurricane storm surges, often near populated areas and ecological zones like Chesapeake Bay. Another 47 are prone to inland flooding, and 31 are in high-wildfire-risk areas.
Despite escalating dangers, costly cleanup plans for these sites often fail to adequately address potential damage from rising sea levels, more frequent storms, and wildfires, the IG’s review found.
“That is a big problem because it means the site managers are not planning mitigation measures,” stated Betsy Southerland, a former director of the agency’s water protection division who spent over 30 years at the EPA.
“The communities living near those sites should be made aware of this planning failure and should insist on robust plans,” she added.
Without proper flood planning, contaminants could be released, potentially wasting taxpayer funds already invested in remediation.
The EPA has indicated it is reviewing the IG’s findings, asserting that its Superfund program already incorporates “the impacts of extreme weather events and other hazards as a standard operating practice in the development and implementation of cleanup projects.”
Last year, President Donald Trump dismissed EPA Inspector General Sean O’Donnell.
While the IG’s new review avoids “climate change” – a term the Republican administration scrubbed from federal websites – its reports still underscore the risks a warming planet poses to the nation’s most dangerous toxic waste sites.
Lara J. Cushing, a UCLA professor studying climate change’s impact on toxic waste sites, called the reports “noteworthy and important.” She stressed, “Although President Trump may wish to ignore it, the fact is the climate is changing and we need to be proactive in responding to rising seas and more extreme weather or face the consequences of increasingly frequent cascading natural-technological disasters that poison communities and local ecosystems.”
The IG’s findings echo a 2017 Associated Press investigation that found 327 Superfund sites vulnerable to climate change-driven flooding. Prompted by Hurricane Harvey, the AP’s inquiry revealed widespread Houston flooding affected seven Superfund sites, causing spills of cancer-causing toxic waste.
The EPA’s new report confirmed that during Harvey, dioxin chemicals were carried by floodwaters into nearby streets, yards, and homes near the San Jacinto River, an area previously highlighted by AP. At the time, the first Trump administration’s EPA dismissed AP’s reporting as fear-mongering “yellow journalism.”
Donald Trump has consistently called climate change a hoax, obstructed renewable energy projects, and advocated for increased burning of planet-warming fossil fuels.
Kim Wheeler, spokesperson for the Inspector General’s office, stated, “This series shines a light on potential threats to federal facility Superfund sites and the critical role of five-year reviews in addressing them.”
She added, “By identifying sites at risk from these weather-related events, we aimed to raise awareness and encourage forward looking planning.”
