Environmental groups present differing opinions of Trump's energy and environment appointees

Energy and climate-focused groups person mixed feelings astir the caller appointees selected to pb the complaint connected environmental issues implicit the adjacent 4 years.

President-elect Donald Trump tapped fracking CEO Chris Wright to caput the Department of Energy, portion erstwhile New York Rep. Lee Zeldin was nominated to tally the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Both candidates are teed up to align themselves with Trump's presumption connected achieving U.S. vigor independency and chopped backmost connected the Biden administration's biology policies, specified arsenic emissions standards. When interviewed by Fox News Digital, leaders of biology groups said that neither inspired overmuch anticipation that Trump would earnestly code their concerns astir the future. 

Zeldin antecedently supported biology causes during his clip successful Congress, specified arsenic cleaning up Long Island Sound, which was applauded by biology groups aft helium was nominated for the apical medication position.

TRUMP TAPS LIBERTY ENERGY CEO CHRIS WRIGHT FOR DEPARTMENT TO ENERGY: ‘LEADING TECHNOLOGIST AND ENTREPRENEUR’

President-elect Donald Trump announced his nominee for caput of energy.  (Evan Vucci)

"Lee Zeldin is profoundly acquainted with the biology issues we look successful the Long Island Sound portion and has championed the Sound’s wellness arsenic co-chair of the Long Island Sound Caucus," Save the Sound, a radical focused connected stopping h2o pollution, and restoring wildlife habitats, said successful a statement. "We admit Representative Zeldin’s anterior enactment of the backing that is captious for the restoration of Long Island Sound, his relation successful passing the Long Island Sound Restoration and Stewardship Act, and his enactment for the imperishable preservation of Plum Island."

The New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV) besides highlighted their enactment with Zeldin implicit the years connected biology issues.

TRUMP TAPS FORMER NEW YORK REP LEE ZELDIN TO LEAD EPA

"While we did not ever spot oculus to oculus with Rep. Zeldin, we did enactment to find communal crushed connected respective issues during his clip successful office, including connected Plum Island, the Great American Outdoors Act, warring offshore drilling connected the East Coast, EPA actions connected PFAS, and restoring backing for Long Island Sound," NYLCV said successful a connection aft Zeldin was nominated. 

"The erstwhile congressman has called himself a champion for conservation wrong the Republican Party. He has besides said helium is committed to nationalist wellness and that helium supports vigor independence. He opposed cuts to the EPA from some Democratic and Republican presidents because, helium said, they would wounded the radical helium was successful bureau to serve," NYLCV continued. "For the wellness and wellness of the American radical and fixed the urgency of the clime crisis, we anticipation his EPA volition bespeak these values."

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin was tapped by Trump to pb the EPA. (Jason DeCrow)

However, the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit of 250 scientists whose probe is geared towards a ngo to "combat clime change," claimed that Zeldin does not person the acquisition for the role.

"If confirmed, Lee Zeldin would travel to the important presumption of EPA head lacking applicable acquisition and has already signaled that helium would enactment corporations implicit people," Rachel Cleetus, the argumentation manager for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said successful a statement. "The EPA's ngo is to support nationalist wellness and the environment, and helium indispensable marque decisions based connected the champion disposable science, not unit from lipid and state companies seeking to grow their profits. His absorption should beryllium connected cutting harmful pollution—including heat-trapping emissions—to safeguard people, the system and ecosystems." 

Earthjustice, the San Francisco-based nonprofit that dates backmost to 1971, expressed skepticism that Zeldin could get escaped of galore of the existent biology policies of the Biden administration.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) (L) and Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) (R) articulation Donald Trump during a run rally astatine the Grappone Convention Center connected Jan. 19, 2024 successful Concord, New Hampshire. (Chip Somodevilla)

"We request a steady, experienced manus astatine EPA to marshal national resources to combat clime alteration and utilize the afloat powerfulness of the instrumentality to support communities from toxic pollution. Lee Zeldin is not that person," Earthjustice President Abigail Dillen said, according to Roll Call. "His loyalty to Donald Trump indicates helium volition gladly instrumentality a sledgehammer to EPA’s astir caller lifesaving regulations, putting authorities implicit subject and endangering our communities."

Environmental groups person been wide captious of pro-fracking campaigner Wright, the CEO and laminitis of Liberty Energy, to caput the Department of Energy successful Trump's 2nd term.

Jeff Deyette, lawman manager of the clime and vigor programme astatine the Union of Concerned Scientists, said that "the information of Chris Wright makes crystal wide the fossil substance industry’s out-sized and undue power connected shaping and implementing the Trump administration’s agenda."

"DOE indispensable prioritize confronting the world of the clime crisis, maintaining absorption connected the technological and argumentation innovation required to alteration a accelerated signifier retired of soiled fossil fuels and modulation to cleanable and reliable renewable energy," Deyette added.

Wright, who described himself arsenic a "lifelong environmentalist," has said that helium believes clime alteration is an issue, but not a crisis, and accused the question of utilizing "deceptive selling terms." 

"Climate alteration is simply a existent problem, and I’ve been speaking connected it for 20 years," Wright said portion speaking astatine the 2023 American Conservation Coalition Summit successful Salt Lake City. "We tin marque advancement connected that. But we can't marque advancement towards solving a clime situation if we're keeping radical successful poorness and not letting them emergence up."

The Sierra Club, an biology radical that "works to beforehand cleanable energy," slammed his views connected clime change.

Liberty Oilfield Services Inc. CEO Chris Wright laughs arsenic helium celebrates the companies IPO connected the level of the New York Stock Exchange soon aft the opening doorbell successful New York connected Jan. 12, 2018. (Lucas Jackson)

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"Not since Donald Trump's astir caller furniture prime has a nominee ever been truthful utterly unqualified for the job," Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous said of Chris Wright. "Clean aerial and cleanable h2o are not a precedence for these people, and their reckless ideas and policies volition lone further harm the American people. Chris Wright is not simply unqualified, he’s a nonstop menace to our aboriginal and the planet’s."

Wright is apt to propulsion backmost connected the Biden administration's people to scope net-zero emissions by 2050.