Trump EPA pick Lee Zeldin says hell nix suffocating regulations while guarding human health and environment

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator-designate Lee Zeldin pledged during his Senate confirmation hearing Thursday to roll back federal directives while still guarding “human health and the environment.”In his opening statement to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Zeldin, 44, warned that red tape was “suffocating the economy” and promised that if confirmed, he would engage with members of both parties as well as the private sector to preserve clean air and water“We must do everything in our power to harness the greatness of American innovation with the greatness of American conservation and environmental stewardship,” Zeldin said.“We must ensure we are protecting our environment, while also protecting our economy.”The former Suffolk County lawmaker, also touted his history of maneuvering bipartisan bills to crack down on pollution and clean up waterways through Congress.“My district on the eastern end of Long Island was unique in that it was almost completely surrounded by water,” Zeldin said.

“My constituents took environmental issues very seriously, and I developed a record in Congress [of] fighting hard and with great success advancing their local priorities.“I worked across party lines to preserve the Long Island Sound and Plum Island.

I supported key legislation that became historic bipartisan success stories like the Great American Outdoors Act and Senator [Dan] Sullivan and White House’s Save Our Seas Act to clean up plastics from our oceans … I was proud to do my part to secure these environmental victories.”When President-elect Donald Trump tapped Zeldin to lead the EPA, he promised his pick had “a very strong legal background” which “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions … while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards.”Trump has vowed to increase domestic oil and gas production in his second term, with more fracking and liquid natural gas exports.Preside...