Washington, D.C. – The following statement was issued by Jeff Watters, Director of Government Relations at Ocean Conservancy, in reaction to the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing to consider the nomination of David Bernhardt to be Secretary of the Interior on March 28:

“From the moment David Bernhardt was nominated for the role of Secretary of Interior, Ocean Conservancy has been deeply concerned. We now stand fully opposed to his nomination.

“Based on the testimony he provided during his confirmation hearing today before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, we have no reason to believe that Bernhardt will protect our ocean and the communities that depend on it.

“In his written testimony, Bernhardt pledged to ‘tirelessly promote’ President Trump’s goals at the Department of the Interior, which include vastly expanding offshore drilling—despite overwhelming bipartisan opposition from Florida to Maine, the Atlantic to the Pacific.

“Bernhardt side-stepped concerns around his past as lobbyist for the oil and gas industry. A recent analysis found that Bernhardt has more conflicts of interest than any other nominee for a Cabinet position in this administration, further noting that it makes the Department of the Interior ‘vulnerable to corruption and capture by corporate interests.’

“He provided no clarity on his ties to corporations like Taylor Energy, which is responsible for an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that has continued for 14 years. Bernhardt also fully supports weakening key safety regulations put in place after the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill that pumped 210 million gallons of oil and 1.8 million gallons of chemical dispersants into our ocean.

“Ocean Conservancy calls on members of the Senate to vote against David Bernhardt’s confirmation. The Department of the Interior has a storied history of protecting the great outdoors and we should not put that legacy at risk. If Bernhardt is confirmed as the next Secretary of Interior, we will have put the proverbial fox in charge of guarding the henhouse.”

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Jeff Watters is available for media enquiries.

Ocean Conservancy is working to protect the ocean from today’s greatest global challenges. Together with our partners, we create science-based solutions for a healthy ocean and the wildlife and communities that depend on it. For more information, visit oceanconservancy.org, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram