People who sued their states over climate change got their first victory

The Montana Supreme Court’s ruling against climate change, climate change and carbon dioxide emissions: A lawsuit defending Our Children’s Trust (CFT)

According to the ruling, climate change and Montana’s emissions have proven to be a substantial factor in causing harm and injury to the youth.

However, it’s up to the state Legislature to determine how to bring the policy into compliance. In a fossil fuel-friendly state where the Republicans dominate the statehouse, there is little to no chance of immediate change.

The judge’s decision, however, is likely to face legal challenges that would send the case to the Supreme Court of Montana. If there is a legal battle in the event of that, policy changes wouldn’t be made immediately.

Julia Olson is an attorney representing a young person and released a statement calling the ruling a huge win for Montana.

Emily Flower, spokesperson for Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, decried the ruling as “absurd” and said the office planned to appeal. She criticized Seeley for allowing the plaintiffs to put on what Flower called a “taxpayer-funded publicity stunt.”

Attorneys for the 16 plaintiffs, ranging in age from 5 to 22, presented evidence during the two-week trial in June that increasing carbon dioxide emissions are driving hotter temperatures, more drought and wildfires and decreased snowpack.

The state believes that if Montana completely stops producing C2 it won’t have an impact on a global scale because of the amount of CO2 contributed by other countries. A remedy has to offer some relief, the state said, or it isn’t one at all.

The state tried to stop the case from going to a trial through a number of motions. Seeley turned down those attempts.

Since its founding, Our Children’s Trust has raised more than $20 million to press its lawsuits in state and federal court. No previous attempts succeeded in getting a trial.

Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere reached highest levels in more than 4 million years last year, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration

The Warming of the Climate is caused by the release of carbon dioxide, a gas that traps heat in the atmosphere. The amount of carbon dioxide in the air reached the highest levels in over 4 million years this spring, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.