David Bernhardt, who has been serving as acting Interior secretary, has been nominated to the job by President Trump/DOI

A flood of criticism greeted the nomination of David Bernhardt as Interior secretary, with concerns voiced that he will kowtow to the oil and gas industries at the expense of national parks and other public lands. Bernhardt has been acting secretary since Ryan Zinke resigned under pressure in December. His nomination was tweeted by President Trump on Monday.

Several organizations immediately called for the Senate to reject the nomination.

“While Secretary Zinke distracted America with his Teddy Roosevelt ruse, David Bernhardt and his team kept land giveaways to the oil and gas industry moving and the public muzzled from objecting to their polluting agenda," said Wilderness Society President Jamie Williams. "At the helm of Interior, Bernhardt would further jeopardize our climate and communities across the country with his relentless mission to remove protections for land, water and wildlife. We call on the Senate to reject this nomination.”

Over at the National Parks Conservation Association, President Theresa Pierno also called for the nomination to be cast aside.

“We have serious concerns with the nomination of David Bernhardt for Interior Secretary and cannot support someone who doesn’t have the best interest of our parks, wildlife, air and water in mind. Our national parks need and deserve an Interior Secretary who will ensure that our nation’s most treasured places are preserved unimpaired for future generations," she said. "Someone who will stand up for what is right for public lands in the face of political and industry pressures, and who is committed to working with tribes, local communities, conservation groups and the American people.

“Instead, Mr. Bernhardt has picked up right where former Secretary Zinke left off, rolling back protections for our public lands by expanding oil and gas drilling at all costs, and undermining some of our country’s most vital bedrock environmental laws including the Endangered Species Act. As we did with Mr. Zinke, NPCA has given Mr. Bernhardt a chance to follow through with his commitment to steward our public lands, but he has shown no interest in putting the agency and our national parks back on track."

Bernhardt, determined to keep national parks open during the recent partial government shutdown, turned to an unusual funding source when garbage and human sewage overwhelmed vault toilets and restrooms went uncleaned. Rather than closing the parks, he allowed the National Park Service to tap Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act funds, which Congress intended to be used for improving the visitor's experience, not maintaining it.

In the House Natural Resources Committee, Chairman Raúl Grijalva said he would scrutinize Bernhardt's industry ties.

“David Bernhardt spent much of his career lobbying for fossil fuel and agricultural interests, and the president putting him in charge of regulating his former clients is a perfect example of everything wrong with this administration," the Arizona Democrat said. "We intend to conduct vigorous oversight of Mr. Bernhardt’s industry ties and how they may influence his policy decisions. This administration has lost the benefit of the doubt, thanks in no small part to Ryan Zinke’s failed tenure at the Interior Department. We expect Mr. Bernhardt to right the ship and will act in his absence if he doesn’t.”

Also critical of the nomination was Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, who labled the nominee a "walking conflict of interest."

"The Secretary of the Interior should be someone who respects the mission of the department and sees the value in our public lands and waters beyond their capacity to be drilled, mined, or fracked," said Brune. "Bernhardt’s time as Ryan Zinke’s right-hand man in their joint efforts to help corporate polluters at the expense of the American people makes it clear that he is not that person. The Senate must reject Bernhardt and not allow this fossil fuel lobbyist to do any more damage to our shared public spaces.”

While the National Wildlife Society did not oppose the nomination outright, it did ask the Senate to do its due diligence on Bernhardt.

“History judges Secretaries of the Interior by the public lands they steward, the wildlife species they conserve, and the voices of people on the landscape they amplify. The U.S. Senate should press Acting Secretary Bernhardt on his top conservation priorities and the specific steps he will take restore balance to the Department’s actions, including prioritizing the recovery of the thousands of vulnerable wildlife species, protecting treasured landscapes across the nation, upholding Tribal obligations and responsibilities, preventing oil spills off our coasts, and restoring robust public input into decision-making,” said Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation.

But officials at Ducks Unlimited praised the nomination.

"I have known and worked with David Bernhardt for more than a decade and we are excited to continue to work with him as the new Secretary of the Interior,” said Ducks Unlimited CEO Dale Hall. “His integrity in following the law is beyond reproach. David Bernhardt is a champion of conservation and the right person for the job. We urge the Senate to swiftly confirm him."

Bernhardt's role in the Trump administration was not his first with the White House. In 2006, he was unanimously confirmed by the Senate to serve as Interior's solicitor, or top lawyer. Prior to that, he had several high-level positions with Interior, including deputy solicitor, deputy chief of staff, counselor to the Secretary of the Interior, and director of the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs.

In 2007, in addition to his DOI duties, Bernhardt was appointed by President George W. Bush to lead the International Boundary Commission between the United States and Canada where Bernhardt was responsible, along with his Canadian counterpart, for maintaining the 5,525-mile international boundary between these two nations.