Barack Obama is due to map out America's first climate change strategy on Tuesday, cutting greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, shoring up coastlines against flooding and sea level rise, and helping advance an international climate deal, White House officials said.

The much-anticipated speech, due at Georgetown University on Tuesday afternoon, will for the first time set out a course of actions designed to reduce the emissions that cause climate change, as well as protect Americans from its worst consequences. They offer the first clear view of how Obama intends to make good on his sweeping promises to act on climate change in his second term.

Administration officials, briefing reporters ahead of the speech, said Obama would reiterate his commitment to cutting America's greenhouse gas emissions 17% from 2005 levels by the end of the decade. The president would use his executive authority to initiate a number of "steady and responsible steps" in order to meet that target.