President-elect Donald Trump's energy policies could exacerbate future wildfires, several environmental science professors told Newsweek on Sunday.
Newsweek has reached out to Trump's transition team via email for comment on Sunday.
Why It Matters
Wildfires ravaged Southern California this past week, leaving 16 people dead and thousands of homes destroyed. While climate change doesn't necessarily cause wildfires, it makes them more frequent and intense.
Trump and his base have criticized California's Democratic leaders, including Governor Gavin Newsom, for contributing to the devastation in Los Angeles County.
Meanwhile, the president-elect has promised to tear down President Joe Biden's clean energy policies, which he has called a "green new scam," and increase oil and gas production, repeatedly saying that he wants to, "Drill, baby, drill," once he enters the White House on January 20.
What To Know
In past years, Trump has called climate change a "hoax," and during his 2024 presidential campaign, he repeatedly sowed doubt about climate change, including when he made incorrect claims about the rate at which sea levels are rising.
"We well know Trump does not accept the science of climate change and the reality of climate change. He's very dismissive of it," Robert Wilson, an associate professor at Syracuse University's Geography and the Environment Department, told Newsweek via telephone on Sunday. "Certainly, I've seen no news account over the past week where he's acknowledged that climate change has played a role in making the wildfires in California worse."
Wilson continued: "So, collectively, that is very discouraging because it seems to indicate that he's not going to do much to address climate change and he's not going to take the current and emerging threats of climate change, particularly with wildfire, seriously either."
'Direct Line' Between More Fossil Fuel Use and Wildfires
Jacob Bendix, a professor emeritus in the same department as Wilson, explained how Trump's energy policies would lead to a hotter and drier Earth, which would be the perfect condition to fuel wildfires.
"The increased exploitation of fossil fuels that Donald Trump has promised would worsen our already severe wildfire problems. While there are numerous and varied contributing factors for large fires in the western United States and Canada all have one thing in common: dry hot conditions," he told Newsweek via email on Sunday. "Fires require heat, and they require dry fuel. The higher temperatures are, and the less precipitation there is, the more readily wildfires are ignited and the faster they spread."
He added: "We know that using fossil fuels adds greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. And we know that the resulting climate change includes higher temperatures and increased frequency of drought. So there is pretty much a direct line from policies for fossil fuel use to increased wildfire."
'Speculation' Surrounding Trump's Energy Policies
James Clark, Nicholas Distinguished Professor of Environmental Science at Duke University, painted a less clear picture of what a second Trump administration could mean for the environment.
"There's obviously a lot of speculation on what he would actually do on energy policy," he told Newsweek via telephone. "He's surrounding himself with some folks that obviously are going to promote fossil fuels, but at the same time are probably going to take a broader view to energy policy."
Some of Trump's picks that can influence energy policy in his incoming administration are former New York Representative Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), former North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum to lead the U.S. Department of the Interior and energy executive Chris Wright to lead the U.S. Department of Energy.
"I think that's all unknown, but...anything that continues to increase greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere is going to continue to have a big impact on wildfires," Clark said.
There are many factors, besides energy policy, that contribute to the spread of wildfires. In the particular case of the California wildfires, a lack of prescribed fires, or controlled burns, which are intentionally set by professionals to reduce hazardous fuels like brush, dead trees and other highly flammable materials, helped create ideal conditions for the flames to rapidly spread.
Tahra Jirari, the director of economic analysis at the tech-aligned Chamber of Progress, previously told Newsweek that while there are several factors that could have mitigated the fires in Los Angeles, "if prescribed fires have been conducted at the rate they should have the damage would have been lessened."
What People Are Saying
President-elect Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday: "Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way."
He further claimed that Newsom prioritized protecting the Delta smelt, a small fish species, over the needs of Californians. "Now the ultimate price is being paid," Trump added.
In response, Izzy Gardon, director of communications for Newsom, told Newsweek: "There is no such document as the water restoration declaration, that is pure fiction. The Governor is focused on protecting people, not playing politics, and making sure firefighters have all the resources they need".
President Joe Biden said in a statement on Tuesday, "I am being frequently briefed on the wildfires in west Los Angeles. My team and I are in touch with state and local officials, and I have offered any federal assistance that is needed to help suppress the terrible Pacific Palisades fire."
What Happens Next
Fire crews are working tirelessly to put out the California wildfires. The Palisades fire, which has burned through 23,713 acres, is only 11 percent contained as of Sunday afternoon, the Eaton fire, which has burned through 14,117 acres, is only 27 percent contained as of late Sunday morning and the Hurst fire, which has burned through 799 acres, is 89 percent contained as of Sunday morning.
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