Remarks for the launch of the U.S. Center at the 28th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP28)
Michael Regan, EPA Administrator
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Thank you, John, for that kind introduction.
You’ve been a steadfast champion in the climate and environmental spaces throughout your career in public service, and I’m grateful for our continued partnership.
On behalf of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, I’m humbled and truly honored for the opportunity to stand before you all today as we open the US Center, where we’ll highlight how President Biden has re-established the United States as the global leader on ambitious climate action.
On his first day in office, President Biden launched the most progressive climate agenda in U.S. history, and since then, the Biden-Harris Administration has taken historic action and worked with global partners to tackle the climate crisis.
While we work with nations around the world to reduce global emissions in line with a 1.5°C pathway, President Biden has deployed an all-of-government effort to cut our greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030.
And he’s vowed to do so while prioritizing the protection and environmental rights of our nation’s most vulnerable communities.
EPA is at the very center of the President’s whole-of-government approach to reducing emissions, and on day one as administrator, I directed my team to push as far and as fast as possible to deliver on the promises of the president’s agenda.
We recognized the weight of President Biden’s charge.
We acknowledged our obligation to the people of our country and to our planet.
And most importantly, we understood the urgency of the moment.
We must act now to protect our planet and protect our future.
And that’s exactly what we’ve been doing. EPA has been hard at work, and we have no intention of slowing down.
We are making progress on our phase out of the climate super-pollutant HFCs. These dangerous pollutants can have a climate impact thousands of times stronger than carbon dioxide, and we are phasing out the US production and consumption by 85%.
In April, our agency proposed new pollution standards for cars, trucks and heavy-duty vehicles, that when finalized, would set the strongest pollution standards for greenhouse gases and other harmful air pollutants in EPA’s history.
This action as proposed would reduce over 9 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide.
In May, EPA proposed new technology standards that would significantly reduce greenhouse gas pollution from fossil-fuel fired power plants.
When finalized, these standards are expected to avoid 775 million metric tons of carbon dioxide through the year 2042.
And we are looking forward to sharing more about our standards to cut methane emissions from oil and gas sources while accelerating reduction technologies and bolstering innovation.
The United States is leading by example on global climate action, as we move quickly to advance these ambitious standards to protect people’s health and combat climate change.
All of this important work is supported by unprecedented funding from both the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, thanks to the President’s leadership.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a once-in-a-generation investment that is changing the physical landscape while tackling pollution, from building climate-resilient water infrastructure, to decarbonizing our nation’s school bus fleet.
The Inflation Reduction Act is the most ambitious climate legislation in US history—and, simply put, is a game changer for our nation’s strategy to mitigate emissions.
Through the Inflation Reduction Act, EPA received over $41 billion dollars—that’s billion with a ‘B’—to confront the climate crisis and deliver life-changing investments to communities across the country.
And one of the most innovative provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act was the creation of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund is a $27 billion dollar, first-of-its-kind program, designed to catalyze billions in private sector investment—scaling the deployment of clean technologies nationally, building clean community financing capacity locally, and spurring the adoption of clean technologies.
We also know that reducing greenhouse gas emissions depends not only on EPA’s ability to mitigate the effects of climate change, but also our capacity to adapt and deliver targeted assistance to ensure communities and local governments across the country have the resources they need to meet their unique climate challenges.
That’s why, thanks to President Biden’s Justice40 initiative, 40% of BIL and IRA funding will go directly to communities that have long borne the burden of pollution and environmental injustice.
We also know that climate mitigation and adaptation are essential components of our strategy to reduce the threats and impacts of climate change.
There’s no doubt there are significant challenges facing our country and our world, but despite all that we must overcome, I also recognize we have a tremendous opportunity to change the course of our future.
We have the opportunity to partner with global leaders on ambitious action to protect the communities around the world from the worst impacts of climate change.
We have an opportunity for unprecedented economic growth.
We have an opportunity to establish new and innovative technology.
And we have an opportunity to safeguard our future and protect our planet for ourselves and for our children.
Thank you.