Author speaks on benefits of fossil fuels at Colorado School of Mines

Author speaks on benefits of fossil fuels at Colorado School of Mines
Author speaks on benefits of fossil fuels at Colorado School of Mines

Author Alex Epstein, famous for his book The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels, recently addressed students at the Colorado School of Mines in a lecture organized by the mines chapter of the American Association of Drilling Engineers (AADE).

“Alex Epstein is a rare voice challenging the putative tide of anti-hydrocarbon sentiment,” AADE Mines Chapter President Taylor Carlson said. “We wanted to bring him in to encourage honest intellectual evaluation of a hotly debated topic, especially because our students are tied to the energy sector and work so hard to be great engineers, but often lack a true understanding of the moral/ethical foundations of the profession.”

According to Epstein, he takes a humanist approach to understanding the impact of fossil fuels, which stands in direct opposition to the environmentalist approach. Epstein believes that the positive impacts of fossil fuels, in technology, medicine and quality of life, combined with their cost-effectiveness and reliability, make them a viable option for the future.

“We need to change the bias we have in our thinking that changing the planet is bad,” Epstein said.

The talk ended with a question-and-answer session with a panel of industry experts.