FILE - Youth plaintiffs in the climate change lawsuit, Held vs. Montana, arrive at the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse, June 20, 2023, in Helena, Mont., for the final day of the trial. A Montana judge in August 2023 sided with young environmental activists who said state agencies were violating their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment by permitting fossil fuel development without considering its effect on the climate.
“The bottom line is whatever the state Supreme Court decides, it’s more likely to be important than the trial court ruling,” said Syracuse University professor David Driesen, an expert on environmental law.Which states could have abortion on the ballot in 2024?that includes an ambitious requirement to decarbonize the state’s transportation system over the next 21 years.
Attorneys for the state argue that the volume of greenhouse gasses released from Montana fossil fuel projects is insignificant compared with global emissions and reducing them would have no meaningful effect on the climate. However, those lawsuits haven’t yet been served on state officials as the activists wait for the high court to weigh in, said Derf Johnson of the Montana Environmental Information Center, a plaintiff in the cases.
District Court Judge Kathy Seeley said in her August 2023 ruling that it would be up to the Legislature to determine how to bring policies into compliance, dimming the chances for prompt changes in what is a fossil fuel-friendly state.