Story highlights Pruitt said he's focused on helping Florida after Irma

He said Congress needs to address climate change

Washington (CNN) Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt told CNN in an interview about Hurricane Irma on Thursday that the time to talk about climate change isn't now.

"Here's the issue," Pruitt told CNN in a phone interview. "To have any kind of focus on the cause and effect of the storm; versus helping people, or actually facing the effect of the storm, is misplaced."

He continued: "What we need to focus on is access to clean water, addressing these areas of superfund activities that may cause an attack on water, these issues of access to fuel. ... Those are things so important to citizens of Florida right now, and to discuss the cause and effect of these storms, there's the... place (and time) to do that, it's not now."

President Donald Trump has previously called climate change a "hoax" and Pruitt has led a push to roll back EPA regulations regarding greenhouse gas emissions.

Hurricane Irma is hammering a string of northeast Caribbean islands and making its way toward a possible hit on Florida over the weekend. As the Category 5 storm heads toward the Florida coast, experts have been clear about how global warming has contributed to the increased strength of hurricanes this season.

Read More