ELP Supports Teens' Climate Change Lawsuit

ELP Supports Teens' Climate Change Lawsuit

March 1, 2019: On Friday, March 1st, 2019, the Sierra Club submitted in amicus brief to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the youth plaintiffs in Juliana v. United States, a landmark decision in which the district court recognized the fundamental right to "a climate system capable of sustaining human life." As the brief explains, by actively encouraging the extraction of fossil fuels from their vast landholdings for eventual combustion and extensively subsidizing fossil fuel development, while simultaneously failing to fulfill their obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the U.S. government has affirmatively endangered the plaintiffs' health, safety, and wellbeing. As one of the two highest-emitting nations on Earth, the United States must demonstrate strong leadership and a commitment to action to combat climate change to ensure that the planet remains habitable for today's youth and future generations. Instead, the federal government has maximized fossil fuel production and abdicated its responsibility to rein in climate pollution. This is the second time the Club has briefed the Ninth Circuit in the Juliana case on the U.S. government's endless denials, delays, false starts, modest gains, and backsliding on climate action, demonstrating the need for court mandated action.