Lee Zeldin, Trump’s EPA Nominee, is short on environmental experience

Of all the government agencies that President-elect Donald J. Trump has threatened to shrink or eliminate, perhaps none has been a bigger target than the Environmental Protection Agency.

During Trump’s first administration, the nation’s top regulators of air and water pollution and industrial chemicals saw their budgets slashed, leading to layoffs and reduced enforcement of regulations. about the environment.

This time, Mr. Trump can go further.

President Biden rebuilt the EPA and used it to issue two strong climate regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from tailpipes and power plants. But Mr. Trump said he would “kill” the agency’s climate regulations, and people close to the Trump transition have suggested ousting EPA employees, eliminating its science adviser, and closing an office that helps communities. -minority communities that struggle with polluted air and air. water. There is even talk of moving the EPA’s headquarters and its 7,000 employees out of Washington, possibly to Texas or Florida, as a way to cut staff.

The man who will carry out the demolition is former congressman from New York, Lee Zeldin, who will appear on Thursday before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

The appointment of Mr. Zeldin has puzzled many, as he has little knowledge of environmental planning.

But Mr. Zeldin, 44, who ran unsuccessfully for governor of New York in 2022, is a Trump supporter who has chosen not to certify the results of the 2020 election. Friends say he has a long and loyal relationship with He is the elected president.

“They have a unique bond,” said Chris Berardini, a Republican activist. “Republicans in New York tend to be close. It’s a very lonely brotherhood.”

These two men have something else in common, said Mr. Berardini. Last summer, Mr. Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign event. In the year 2022, Mr. Zeldin is attacked by a man with a sharp weapon at a campaign event. “These are the tenuous threads that attach to personal relationships,” Mr. Berardini said.

Although Mr. Zeldin has no experience in environmental control, he and his colleagues point to his years representing the Long Island district, which has miles of coastline and a bipartisan tradition. the protection of the environment.

Meanwhile, Mr. Zeldin seems to have taken the opposite position of Mr. Trump: he says he needs clean air and water if he plans to repeal regulations that guarantee both, along with limiting greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels. associated with more severe droughts, wildfires, floods.

Upon accepting the nomination as EPA chairman, Mr. Zeldin wrote in X, “We will restore American energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to restore American jobs, and make America a leader world in AI. We will do it by protecting clean air and water”.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-West Virginia, who chairs the Environment Committee, said Wednesday on Fox Business News that Mr. Zeldin that “as a representative of New York, he saw all kinds of clean air, clean water problems, and the best way to solve these problems.”

But Ms. Capito, whose country is a major producer of coal and natural gas, also seems confident that Mr. Mr. Zeldin is Trump.

In a Facebook post last month, Ms. Capito wrote: “Congressman Zeldin understands the need to end regulatory overreach, unleash American energy, and allow Americans to rebuild — while protecting public health and the environment. His skills are well-suited to implementing President Trump’s agenda. “

Mr. Zeldin has been tight-lipped about whether he accepts the science behind climate change but is a member of Congress on climate action in Congress. However, he voted against the Affordable Care Act, the nation’s first major climate law, which would have poured at least $370 billion into clean energy programs.

When New York Gov. Kathy Hochul criticized Mr. Zeldin, she responded on social media, saying, “I just voted NO because the bill is vague.”

During Mr. Zeldin’s tenure in the Senate, he voted against the Clean Water Act at least a dozen times, and the Clean Air Act at least a dozen times, according to the scorecard by the League of Voters, an environmental group.

However, he bragged about protecting federal funds to improve the health of Long Island Sound, and voted for a bill that would require the EPA to set limits on PFAS, harmful chemicals that persist in the environment. and the human body. The EPA under the Biden administration set strict limits on chemicals in drinking water. In 2020, he voted against legislation to cut the EPA’s budget.

Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, the senior Democrat on the environment committee, said he met with Mr. Zeldin Tuesday and had a “good, honest conversation.”

Mr. Markey also questioned his ability to lead the EPA, and expressed doubts about its commitment to protect air and water from polluting industries.

“I am not convinced that the protection of our communities and our environment is his priority,” said Mr. Markey.

On climate change, Mr. Markey said Mr. Zeldin “believed that human activity is contributing to climate change.” But he said, “My question goes to the priorities of the EPA under his leadership.”

Lisa Friedman contributed to the report.