Instead of addressing the root causes that scientists and experts say are fueling some of the unprecedented wildfires now ravaging communities in California and other western states, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is himself under fire on Wednesday after penning an op-ed that critics argue shows the top Trump official exploiting the ongoing infernos as a way to push the business interests of logging companies and other extractive industries.

“Radical environmentalists,” he argued on USA Today‘s opinion page, are to blame for blazes like the Mendocino Complex Fire, which became the largest in the state’s history this week, due to their calls to protect federal lands and national monuments instead of opening them up to loggers, ranchers, and the fossil fuel industry.

“Every year we watch our forests burn, and every year there is a call for action,” Zinke wrote. “Yet, when action comes, and we try to thin forests of dead and dying timber, or we try to sustainably harvest timber from dense and fire-prone areas, we are attacked with frivolous litigation from radical environmentalists who would rather see forests and communities burn than see a logger in the woods.”

The former Montana congressman’s op-ed was slammed by critics on social media—as was CNN‘s interpretation of Zinke’s proposal. The cable network published its own article describing the Interior Secretary’s aim to clear forests as a “proactive approach.”

While containing wildfires and stopping them from forming may require multi-pronged efforts, Zinke’s idea of “forest management”—which includes  allowing logging companies to clear more forests—would do little to help, according to wildfire expert Michael Kodas.