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Wright says fossil fuel extraction can end poverty

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Trump's DOE pick seen pursuing 'energy dominance' agenda

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Wright does not view carbon emissions as pollution

By Timothy Gardner and Nichola Groom

WASHINGTON/LOS ANGELES Nov 22 (Reuters) -

P resident-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the energy

department believes fossil fuels are the key to ending world

poverty which, he says, is a greater problem than climate

change's "distant" threat, according to a report he penned as

CEO of oilfield services company Liberty Energy.

In a corporate report released in February called 'Bettering

Human Lives,' Chris Wright said that the energy transition has

not begun and that climate change, while a challenge, is not the

greatest threat to humans.

Poverty is a bigger threat that can be alleviated with

access to hydrocarbons, said Wright, who started a foundation

aimed at expanding propane cook stoves in developing countries.

Mainstream science conflicts with many opinions of the

incoming top U.S. energy official, who will likely be zealous to

carry out Trump's agenda, maximizing already record-high

domestic oil and gas production and withdrawing from

international cooperation to avoid catastrophic climate change.

"The vibes will be better for the oil and gas industry,"

Morgan Bazilian, director of the Payne Institute at the Colorado

School of Mines, said in an interview, adding the industry felt

attacked by President Joe Biden's climate policies.

Bazilian called Wright "a perfect example of this. He's been

outspoken on how the oil and gas industry has brought security

and power and development to the United States, which is true.

The other thing that's true is that global emissions aren't

going down."

Scientists say emissions from burning fossil fuels are a

major cause of climate change which is unfolding faster than

expected.

Wright pushes back on the treatment of carbon dioxide as a

pollutant, saying carbon is essential for life.

Peter Reich, a climate scientist at the University of

Michigan, called Wright's logic "terrifyingly absurd."

"People and their pets and crops also need water," Reich

said. "That doesn't mean that if your house is flooded up to the

second floor or your soybean field is under water, that water

cannot be a problem."

A spokesperson for the Trump transition team said: "As a

leading innovator and entrepreneur, Chris Wright is a bold

advocate for President Trump's pledge to bring down the price of

energy and secure energy independence." Wright's spokesperson at

Liberty did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wright wrote "the wealthy world has gone beyond

over-optimism surrounding the breadth and scalability of a

narrow slice of alternative energy and, unfortunately, has

rushed head-long into outright obstruction of hydrocarbon

infrastructure and

production."

The report says the number of polar bears is rising, without

evidence. Charlotte Lindqvist, an expert at the University of

Buffalo, said polar bear populations are not increasing and the

species is losing its sea ice habitats.

Wright does support some petroleum alternatives, such as

small modular nuclear, which is not commercial yet and

geothermal, while criticizing solar and wind as insufficient.

Bazilian said that view is outdated, noting that the cost of

carbon-free solar and wind has fallen dramatically and those

sources can also address energy poverty.

Wright also wrote that deaths from extreme weather have

declined for a century thanks to increased wealth and access to

energy.

Drew Shindell, a climate scientist at Duke University, said

Wright's point follows a common tactic of "stating things that

are correct but irrelevant or tangential at best to the actual

questions at hand."

"It would be a great rebuttal to the argument that to

mitigate climate change we should phase out fossil fuels and

instead sit in the dark and reverse modernity. No one is arguing

that, however," Shindell said.

Michael Mann, a climate scientist at the University of

Pennsylvania, pointed to the more than 200 people who died due

to October's Hurricane Helene, which scientists say was worsened

by climate change.

Liberty has published the report since 2021 as an

environmental, social, and governance (ESG) publication. Liberty

says its mission to provide affordable energy sources is aligned

with ESG investing principles.