Then-Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) arranged the event after Long Island officials and local environmental activists complained that the only federal hearing on the 2018 presidential executive order to allow that oil exploration and drilling had been held in Albany. Legal challenges eventually blocked the drilling.

Like the EPA administrators from Trump's first term—former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler and "fossil fuel puppet" Scott Pruitt —Zeldin is expected to pursue the Republican's plan to "drill, baby, drill," despite the devastating consequences for the global climate.

Zeldin is a Trump loyalist, and Trump has already promised to gut any regulations that the oil industry doesn't like.

What to expect from Donald Trump’s EPA pick: deregulation justified as boosts for the economy and platitudes about the importance of clean air and water.

President-elect Donald Trump has selected former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and Zeldin announced that he has accepted the role.

By tapping former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to head the Environmental Protection Agency, President-elect Donald Trump opted to put his planned radical rollback of climate policy in the hands of a staunch ally who is skilled at projecting an image of a moderate conservationist.

President-elect Trump on Monday announced former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) as his nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Zeldin has a fairly thin track record on environmental policy,

"It is an honor to join President Trump's Cabinet as EPA Administrator," the former New York congressman wrote.

Inside Climate News reporter Marianne Lavelle writes that New York Representative Lee Zeldin brings a moderate face to a radical game plan.

Despite his past pro-environment votes, Lee Zeldin is expected to be on board with Trump’s climate policy rollbacks.