Trump Transition Live Updates: The latest on Senate confirmation hearings

People close to the Trump transition have also recommended ousting career EPA staff, eliminating its science advisers and closing an office that helps minority communities that struggle disproportionately with polluted air and water.

The nomination of Mr. Zeldin, 44, who ran unsuccessfully for governor of New York in 2022, surprised many because he has little background in environmental regulation. Appearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Mr. Zeldin to answer specific questions from some lawmakers about various environmental issues and told them he was eager to learn about them.

Mr. Zeldin pointed to his years representing his Long Island district, which includes miles of coastline and has a bipartisan tradition of environmental conservation, as evidence of his environmental stewardship. He was also a member of the House Bipartisan Climate Caucus and voted for a 2016 Chemical Safety Act.

In his opening statement to the committee, Mr. Zeldin: “I firmly believe that we have a moral responsibility to be good stewards of our environment for generations to come. It has been so motivating to see the tremendous talent step up to serve at EPA that I could not be more excited to partner with our EPA team nationwide to exceptionally serve the American public.”

He also said, “I will foster a collaborative culture within the agency and support career staff who have dedicated themselves to this mission.”

But as a congressman, he voted against the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate bill ever passed by Congress, and he is a loyal Trump supporter who voted against certifying the results of the 2020 election.

During his political career, Mr. Zeldin received more than $270,000 in campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry, according to OpenSecrets, which tracks campaign finances.

In recent years, Mr. Zeldin a consulting company. He sat on the board of America First Works and had ties to its sister organization, the America First Policy Institute, conservative groups that have worked with the Trump transition on plans to roll back climate regulations and promote fossil fuels. The head of the America First Policy Institute, Brooke Rollins, Mr. Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Agriculture is the former head of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a pro-fossil fuel group that has funded the spread of climate change misinformation.

“When you are so surrounded by corporate and fossil fuel influence, how can you be able to separate yourself from those interests when they come and demand things that they have ‘earned’ politically?” asked Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat of Rhode Island.

Mr. Zeldin said he would not be swayed by past connections or donors.

“There is no person who has given me any kind of support, who has any particular influence on me,” answered Mr. Zeldin. “There is no big or small dollar that can influence the decision I make.”

When Mr. Whitehouse grilled the nominee on the basic science of climate change, Mr. Zeldin first.

“What is the effect of carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels?” Mr. Whitehouse asked Mr. Zeldin, referring to the main cause of global warming that is dangerously warming the planet.

“While I’m someone who strongly believes that science and policymakers should work together, I think we have a lot of talented scientists delivering that research,” Mr. Zeldin.

But when Mr. Whitehouse pressed, answered Mr. Zeldin finally accurately: “Trapping heat, sir,” adding “Greenhouse gases trap heat.”

Mr. Trump has repeatedly said he would scrap President Biden’s signature climate rules, including a strict limit on exhaust emissions designed to reduce greenhouse gases by forcing automakers to increase sales of hybrid and all-electric vehicles. The American Petroleum Institute, which lobbies on behalf of major oil companies, put the rollback of the auto pollution rule at the top of a wish list it delivered to Mr. Trump.

But when Senator Pete Ricketts, Republican of Nebraska, and Senator Edward J. Markey, Democrat of Massachusetts, pressed Mr. Zeldin on whether he planned to undo this rule, he declined to answer.

“I am not allowed to predict the results when they are drawn up,” he said. “I’m not sitting in front of you with any kind of commitment that I’m going to make in terms of any kind of rule that will change if I’m confirmed.”

Still, Republicans from fossil fuel-producing states seemed confident they had an ally in Mr. Zeldin. He was introduced at the hearing by Senator John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming, where coal and oil are important to the economy. Mr. Barrasso is also a long-time opponent of policies to reduce the use of fossil fuels.

“For the past four years, the EPA has pushed policies to kill jobs in Wyoming and raise costs for thousands across the country,” said Mr. Barrasso, adding that Mr. Zeldin wanted to “balance environmental protection and pragmatic public policy.”

Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Republican of West Virginia and the committee chairman, told Mr. Zeldin said she had deep concerns about EPA limits on emissions from smokestacks that are so strict they could force coal-fired power plants to shut down.

Those closures could lead to unacceptable “increasing energy costs and rolling blackouts,” she said.

“I am confident that under Congressman Zeldin’s leadership, EPA will focus on EPA’s core mission of protecting human health and the environment while recognizing the critical role the agency plays in our economy and international leadership,” she said.

At the end of the hearing, she told him: “I expect your confirmation will be very positive.”

Senator Angela Alsobrooks, Democrat of Maryland, asked Mr. Zeldin on whether the Trump administration plans to move EPA headquarters out of the Washington region.

“No one has expressed to me in any setting since I was announced as a nominee or before that any plans to move EPA headquarters outside of DC,” he responded. “I’m not familiar with anyone.”

Lisa Friedman contributed with reporting.