Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., President-elect Donald Trump's pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, appears before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Capitol Hill, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Former U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin emphasized bipartisanship but stopped short of taking firm stances on controversial pollution topics during his U.S. Senate confirmation hearing Thursday as he seeks to be appointed administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Lee Zeldin appeared before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works for his confirmation hearing Thursday, the step before he would become the next administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

I believe that climate change is real,” Zeldin said, adding that he would work to “ensure we are protecting our environment, while also protecting our economy.”

Former LI congressman Lee Zeldin said he will not favor industry over the environment and declared that "climate change is real" at a Senate hearing Thursday on his nomination. NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa reports.

Mr. Zeldin, a Trump loyalist, would be charged with dismantling climate rules and perhaps the agency itself. He faced questions from the Senate Thursday.

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., President-elect Donald Trump's pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, appears before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Capitol Hill. You might know them from: He's a former Republican congressman from New York's Long Island area.

Trump's EPA administrator-nominee took at-times pointed questions from several liberal Democratic senators during his confirmation hearing Thursday.