The Biden administration released a new report on how it plans to address climate-related risk in the U.S., including inside the nation’s pension plans.

The report highlights how the Biden administration is working to implement new measures like improved educational material on climate change and draft federal acquisition rules that would consider the impact investments from government agencies would have on greenhouse gas emissions.

A central point included in the strategy document was identifying ways to protect the retirement savings of Americans from the financial risks posed by global climate change. One of the proposals included in the strategy is a rule that would improve how the Department of Labor will address climate risks in pension plans.

In the fact sheet released with the report on Friday, the White House justified the inclusion of climate risks in pension plans by pointing out that extreme weather events have cost $600 billion in physical and economic damages in the last five years alone, arguing that these losses filter into retirement plans.

The purpose of the rule would be to nudge retirement managers toward paying more attention to climate factors in retirement planning. Under a proposal included in the White House strategy is a Labor Department rule shared on Oct. 14 that it says will help safeguard nearly $12 trillion in retirement savings.

In the text of the rule submitted to the Federal Register, the rule would affect about 54% of the 141 million Americans with pension plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

If finalized, the rule would also apply to pension, health and other welfare plans that currently hold corporate stock as well as ERISA-covered intermediaries. This would include common trusts, master trusts, and any entity that invests the assets of two or more employee benefit plans that are from separate groups.

This set of proposals, aimed at addressing the financial risks of global climate change, is part of President Joe Biden’s long-stated promise to make addressing the issue a key part of his domestic and foreign policies. It joins other initiatives that include building climate resilience into new infrastructure projects as well as plans to increase the share of renewables used in the U.S. energy grid.

The climate strategy also arrives only weeks before Biden is due to travel to Scotland for the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties, or COP26, gathering of world leaders.

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