Jerome Powell says the Fed does not have a calling to be “the climate decision maker.”

The U.S. central bank is not meant to be a “climate decision maker,” its president, Jerome Powell, said Tuesday, despite acknowledging that the Federal Reserve (Fed) has a “responsibility” for climate-related financial risks.

However, policy decisions remain with legislators, Powell said. “We are not and will not be a ‘climate decision maker'”he declared in a speech in Stockholm about the independence of central banks from political power.

The Fed President defended it the central bank must stay true to its mandate and not to pursue other goals for which he does not have authority, given that this may undermine the institution.

However, Powell acknowledged that the Fed, as banking supervisor, has some responsibility for climate-related financial risks.

Without “clear” legislation, he said, it would be “inappropriate” to use monetary policy or surveillance tools to promote a “greener economy or achieve climate-related goals.”