Youths file lawsuit against the state of Montana in U.S. over climate change

Sixteen youths — aged between 5 and 22 — have filed a lawsuit against the state of Montana in the United States, alleging that wildfire smoke, and severe heat, among other effects of climate change, are negatively impacting them.

The plaintiffs contend that the fifth-largest coal-producing state in the country continues backing the fossil fuel industry, which unfairly disadvantages them by rejecting scientific facts and promoting fossil fuels, exacerbating climate change. 

They claim the provision of a clean and healthy environment provided by Montana’s constitution, Article IX, Section 1 that “The state and each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations” is in violation.

The youngsters are pleading with the state to impose a cap on greenhouse gas emissions and have even called out 10 expert witnesses.

The trial is set to conclude on June 23. Depending on the ruling, this could serve as a precedent for similar lawsuits across the country.

Attorneys for Our Children’s Trust — an environmental organisation from Oregon that has brought climate lawsuits in every state since 2011 — are representing the plaintiffs. None had previously reached trial.

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels are now more than 50% higher than they were before the onset of the industrial era, says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Fossil fuel combustion for electricity production and transportation, cement production, deforestation, and agriculture, among other activities all contribute to the emission of CO₂ into the atmosphere.

CO₂ traps heat radiation from the planet’s surface that would otherwise escape into space, intensifying extreme weather phenomena including heat waves, droughts, storms, and wildfires as well as precipitation and flooding.