SOUTH BEND — The United States has a moral obligation to take steps to address climate change, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy said Friday during a visit to the University of Notre Dame.
Americans have a obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make the world a cleaner place for the children of today and tomorrow, McCarthy said.
"All of us — whether in public, private, academic or faith-based communities — we have a role to play in addressing this global challenge for the sake of our kids and especially the world's most vulnerable. That's why we must act today," she said.
McCarthy, a Catholic, made reference to Pope Francis' speeches this week at the White House and the U.S. Capital, where the pontiff urged action to protect vulnerable nations and people from the effects of climate change.
McCarty touted the EPA's proposed Clean Power Plan, which would set strict limits on carbon pollution from power plants.
She praised Notre Dame decision, announced Monday, that the university will cease burning coal entirely within five years and cut its carbon footprint by more than half by 2030. The university will invest $113 million in renewable energy sources and projects, including a hydroelectric project, solar power and geothermal fields both on and off campus, which collectively are expected to reduce CO2 emissions by an estimated 47,500 tons.
The Rev. John I. Jenkins, the university president who appeared with McCarthy, said the move was in response to the pope's encyclical released in June urging action to curb climate change.
McCarthy spoke to a group of students Friday morning in Geddes Hall. Her address was closed to the public and the media.
She and Notre Dame officials held a news conference afterward at the Morris Inn.
McCarthy also touched briefly on the scandal involving German-based auto manufacturer Volkswagen, which has admitted using secret software in Volkswagen cars for years in order to cheat on diesel emission tests.
The EPA announced Friday that it will launch sweeping changes to the way it tests for diesel emissions. In a letter to car manufacturers, the EPA said it will add on-road testing to its regimen, "using driving cycles and conditions that may reasonably be expected to be encountered in normal operation and use, for the purposes of investigating a potential defeat device" similar to the one used by Volkswagen, the Associated Press reported.
The testing will be in addition to standard emissions test cycles already in place, according to McCarthy.