In the United States, more than 10,000 survivors and their allies called on the Justice Department to hold fossil fuel polluters accountable.
ADVERTISINGA citizens’ group is calling on the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the damage caused by the oil industry.
The Chesapeake Climate Action Network and advocacy group Public Citizen have joined forces to deliver a letter demanding that oil and gas companies be held accountable for causing climate-related disasters such as floods, fires, hurricanes and extreme heat that have destroyed property and claimed innocent lives.
The signatories of the letter, which was signed by more than 10,000 people, include over 1,000 people who have themselves survived climate-related disasters.
They want the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the oil industry for allegedly dangerously fueling climate change and deliberately misleading the public about its role.
This letter comes at a time when calls for justice for survivors of fossil fuel-related climate disasters are growing louder.
In the United States, seven individual states, 35 municipalities and the District of Columbia are currently preparing important bills against the oil and gas industry or are already suing them.
Are there precedents for other cases against the oil industry?
And this is not only the case in the USA. In May, non-profit organisations and climate victims in France brought the world’s first criminal Climate lawsuit against the individual heads of a large oil company.
The lawsuit was brought against the French oil giant TotalEnergies and its largest shareholders. The plaintiffs are demanding a trial for manslaughter and other consequences of the “chaos” caused by climate change.
The letter from the US could pave the way for a similar lawsuit on the other side of the pond.
In the letter it is disclosed by Climate activists that the fossil fuel industry was already aware in the 1950s that the burning of fossil fuels would contribute to climate change.
It goes on to claim that instead of working to address this existential threat, major oil companies continue to sabotage climate change solutions, lobby against aggressive climate action, and spend billions deceiving the public.
“Climate disasters are not natural disasters, they are crimes committed by the fossil fuel industry,” said Clara Vondrich, senior counsel at Public Citizen. “The toll is unimaginable: entire communities have been destroyed, businesses that families had built from the ground up have been ruined, and human lives have been stolen.”
“Climate change survivors and their allies have had enough, and our message to the Department of Justice is clear: Investigate the fossil fuel industry and make polluters pay.
“Large oil companies has been sacrificing our health and safety to line their own pockets for over half a century. Survivors of climate crimes deserve justice, no less than victims of murder, arson, assault, armed robbery and other crimes,” she adds.
The letter is signed by victims and lawyers
In 2018 The Californian town of Paradise in Butte County, experienced the worst forest fire in the state’s history: 84 people lost their lives, while hundreds of families were homeless for years.
ADVERTISINGAn investigation has now revealed that the losses were due to the negligence of Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E).
Allen Myers, who lived in Paradise and lost his home in the fire, is working with Public Citizen and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network to ensure that such an incident can never happen again – but that may not be possible.
“Another record-breaking fire is raging in Butte County. This year’s Park Fire is the fourth largest wildfire in California history,” Myers explains.
“To be clear, the fossil fuel industry’s signature is everywhere. The industry continues to ignore the catastrophic consequences of burning fossil fuels, which are heating up our atmosphere and increasing the scale and frequency of disasters. The Department of Justice must hold the fossil fuel industry accountable now,” he added.
ADVERTISINGGabrielle Walton, federal campaign staff member for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, shares his sentiment.
“For decades Large oil companies “We lobbied against aggressive climate action even though we knew fossil fuels would lead to extreme weather, deadly heatwaves, floods and fires. As climate change continues to disrupt weather patterns around the world, the number of climate survivors will grow, crying out for justice,” she says.
“The government has a moral responsibility to protect and defend its citizens, and the letter calls on the Department of Justice to fulfill that obligation,” Walton adds, hoping the government will heed the desperate pleas of thousands of people.
