01/28/09 New Interior Secretary on Future

New Interior Secretary On Future. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. Last week the new Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar addressed Department of the Interior employees around the nation. The 50th Interior Secretary discussed his thoughts on assuming his new position and his plans for future initiatives. He started off by talking about his heritage. SALAZAR: To serve in President Obama's Cabinet as your Secretary of Interior is a humbling honor. My roots in the west stretch back 4 centuries to when my ancestors first came to New Mexico. My family's livelihood depended on the health of the land. Our parents taught us about the importance of water and the importance of land because the sustainability of our family depended on how we took car of our land and our water. Salazar made a point of saying there will be some significant changes on the ground level. SALAZAR: My priorities are many and one of those priorities will be to lead the interior department with openness and decision making, high ethical standards and with respect for scientific integrity. In the last few years this department has suffered because of ethical lapses and criminal activity at the highest level. That doesn't mean to say that the people of the Department of Interior are bad people because they are not; but you know how one apple in a bushel can spoil the whole bushel? He also wants the public to see the Department of Interior in a new light. SALAZAR: I pledge to you that we will ensure the Interior Department's decisions are based on sound science and the public interest and not on the special interests. And I want the public to be proud of the Department's work and I want those who work for the Department to be proud of their service. In our work together in the months and years ahead, I want to transform this department from what has been perceived as a department of the west to the department of all of America. Finally Salazar said that he will be open to new ideas. SALAZAR: I urge you to see how we move forward with that agenda and how that agenda fits in to the vision of our President with the kind of government we want to have. I am open to your ideas on how this Department for example can be a model for national service. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.