Notre Dame to do away with coal

NORTE DAME, Ind., Sept. 22 (UPI) -- With Pope Francis headed to the United States, one of the nation's largest Catholic universities, Notre Dame, said it was moving away from coal.

"In recognition of both Pope Francis' encyclical and his visit this week to the United States, Notre Dame is recommitting to make the world a greener place, beginning in our own backyard," Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins said in a statement.

Pope Francis in June released an encyclical on climate change, calling for worldwide environmental policies. The Catholic pope said in his message that climate change is "one of the principal challenges facing humanity in our day." Policies, he said, should focus on renewable energy and efficiency.

Jenkins said Notre Dame University will stop relying on coal for electricity within five years and cut its carbon footprint by more than half before the end of the next decade. To do so, the university plans to invest $113 million in renewable energy resources and put a greater emphasis on natural gas in its energy mix.

Jenkins meets Wednesday with the pope during his tour of the nation's capital. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said responding to the pope's message on climate change made good business sense.

"We are seeing that through greater investment in things like wind energy and solar energy, that the cost of that energy is rapidly declining. That's good news for American businesses and American consumers," he said. "It also happens to be good news for our planet."

The federal Clean Power Plan set a goal of cutting emissions of carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas, by 32 percent of their 2005 baseline by 2030, 9 percent more than in the original proposal. Solar power is getting less expensive to develop and the United States is moving closer to advancing a frontier plan for offshore wind energy programs.

Rhea Suh, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the pope's message on climate change resonates across broad parts of society.

"Regardless of our faith, he's said, our economic station or political preference, we have a moral obligation to be responsible stewards of the earth we share and the natural systems upon which all life depends," he said.