diff --git a/devtools/scripts/create_conda_env.py b/devtools/scripts/create_conda_env.py
index b51adc86..9ece84ad 100644
--- a/devtools/scripts/create_conda_env.py
+++ b/devtools/scripts/create_conda_env.py
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 # YAML imports
 try:
     import yaml  # PyYAML
-    loader = yaml.load
+    loader = yaml.safe_load
 except ImportError:
     try:
         import ruamel_yaml as yaml  # Ruamel YAML