The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels

"Mankind's use of fossil fuels is supremely virtuous—because human life is the standard of value, and because using fossil fuels transforms our environment to make it wonderful for human life." Fossil fuels enable human flourishing.

"Mankind's use of fossil fuels is supremely virtuous—because human life is the standard of value, and because using fossil fuels transforms our environment to make it wonderful for human life." Fossil fuels enable human flourishing. Since the widespread adoption of fossil fuels, human life expectancy and income have skyrocketed. Fossil fuels power the machines that make modern civilization possible, from agriculture to transportation to healthcare. Environmental benefits are overlooked. Contrary to popular belief, fossil fuels have made our environment cleaner and safer. They enable water purification, sanitation systems, and protection from natural disasters. The data shows that as CO2 emissions have increased, deaths from climate-related causes have plummeted by 98% in the last century. Moral case for fossil fuels. Using fossil fuels to improve human life is virtuous. They have lifted billions out of poverty and continue to be essential for human flourishing. The benefits far outweigh the manageable risks and side effects.

"There are 7 billion people in the world, but 1.3 billion have no electricity. Over 3 billion are classified as not having 'adequate electricity'—a threshold that is far less than we enjoy and take for granted." Enormous unmet energy needs. Billions of people lack access to adequate energy, which is essential for a good quality of life. For everyone to have as much energy as the average American, global energy production would need to quadruple. Energy is ability. More energy means more ability to improve our lives in every way. It powers our homes, transportation, agriculture, industry, and healthcare. Energy scarcity means poverty, suffering, and death. The challenge. Producing cheap, plentiful, reliable energy on a massive scale is an enormous challenge. Any viable solution must be able to scale to meet the needs of billions of people.

"Fossil fuel technology puts everything together: It can get a plentiful fuel source cheaply and convert it to energy cheaply—on a scale that can power life for billions of people." Unmatched advantages of fossil fuels: Cheap and abundant Reliable and controllable Energy dense Portable (especially oil) Scalable to billions of people Alternatives fall short. Renewables like solar and wind are unreliable and cannot scale to meet global energy needs. Nuclear has potential but faces major hurdles. Fossil fuels remain uniquely capable of meeting the world's enormous energy needs. Continued importance. Even as alternatives improve, fossil fuels will likely remain essential for decades to come, especially for developing countries seeking to industrialize and lift their populations out of poverty.