https://www.commondreams.org/news/california-sues-big-oil
'The state of California on Friday filed suit against ExxonMobil, Shell, BP,
ConocoPhillips, and Chevron, accusing the five oil and gas giants of a
decadeslong campaign to mislead the public about the threat fossil fuels pose
to the climate.
The lawsuit makes California the largest economy on the planet to take legal
action against fossil fuel companies over their efforts to deceive the world
about their destructive—and immensely profitable—business model. California is
also a major producer of oil and gas.
"This has been a multi-decade, ongoing campaign to seek endless profits at the
expense of our planet, our people, and the greedy corporations and individuals
need to be held accountable," California Attorney General Rob Bonta told
The
New York Times in an interview on Friday. "That's where we come in."
With its new civil lawsuit, filed in a San Francisco court, California joins
Rhode Island, Minnesota, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, and other states
that have sued the fossil fuel industry over its role in massive climate
damages. Dozens of municipalities, including several in California, have also
filed lawsuits against oil giants.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. has
experienced a record-breaking 23 billion-dollar extreme weather disasters this
year, from deadly flooding in California to the catastrophic wildfire that
killed nearly 100 people in Maui, Hawaii—which is also suing Big Oil.
Cities and states representing 25% of the U.S. population are currently taking
part in some kind of climate-related legal action against the fossil fuel
industry, according to Fossil Free Media, and the Biden Justice Department is
facing growing pressure to join the fight.'
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
