The argument that environmental conservation stands in the way of economic growth is “a false choice,” President Barack Obama told conservation leaders Friday.

On the contrary, Obama said in remarks at the Interior Department, conservation provides a boost.

“We’re not just preserving our land and water for the next generation, we’re also making more land available for hunting and fishing, and we’re bolstering an outdoor economy that supports more than nine million jobs and brings in more than $1 trillion a year,” he said.