[SustainableTompkins] The state of California is suing six carmakers for costs associated with their cars' greenhouse gas emissions

[John Miller]

As predicted earlier in Ode magazine, lawsuits may create dramatic
movement on CO2 reductions  Article below from BBC news
 
The state of California is suing six carmakers for costs associated with
their cars' greenhouse gas emissions. 
The suit names General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Honda, Chrysler and Nissan.

California is asking for "monetary compensation" for the damage which it
says their emissions are doing to health, economy and environment. 
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (AAM), a pan-industry body,
called it a "nuisance" suit and suggested it may be dismissed. 
"Right now, global warming is harming California," runs the state's
complaint. 
"Human-induced global warming has, among other things, reduced
California's snow pack (a vital source of fresh water), caused an
earlier melting of the snow pack, raised sea levels along California's
coastline, increased ozone pollution in urban areas, [and] increased the
threat of wildfires." 
State lawyers want any judgement for damages to be ongoing, so that
manufacturers will be liable every year. 
Guto Hari, the BBC's North American business correspondent, notes that
California has taken an aggressive stance on global warming, passing
legislation to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2020. 
'Time to answer' 
The lawsuit, lodged on behalf of the Californian people by state
attorney-general Bill Lockyer, alleges that emissions from cars made by
the firms in question account for 30% of all carbon dioxide emissions in
California. 
"It is time to hold these companies responsible for their contribution
to this crisis" 
Bill Lockyer
state attorney-general



The complaint alleges that the firms' activities have harmed the state's
environmental health, with California having to spend million of dollars
responding to environmental threats such as coastal erosion. 
Mr Lockyer said he had not put a figure of the level of damages he was
seeking but that it was likely to run into "hundreds of millions of
dollars". 
"Global warming is causing significant harm to California's environment,
economy, agriculture and public health," he added. 
"The impacts are already costing millions of dollars and the price tag
is increasing. It is time to hold these companies responsible for their
contribution to this crisis." 
'Most significant' 
This is the latest in a series of legal and quasi-legal cases in the US
aimed at forcing reductions in greenhouse gas emissions 
 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/science/nature/5164476.stm> Heritage body
'no' on climate


 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/science/nature/4556662.stm> Contempt case
for Shell


 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/americas/3308827.stm> Inuit to sue on
climate



*	An Inuit group is taking the federal government to the
Inter-American Commission for Human Rights 
*	Conservation groups are trying to force the government to
protect coral and polar bears from the effects of global warming 
*	There are ongoing attempts to force the Environmental Protection
Agency to define CO2 as a pollutant and regulate emissions
Roda Verheyen of Climate Justice, an international organisation which
co-ordinates legal climate cases, said California's suit took action to
a new level. 
"It is the most significant piece of climate change litigation that has
ever been brought," she said. 
Car manufacturers have their own case against California pending over
laws requiring them to reduce emissions. 
The AAM said in a statement: "Automakers will need time to review this
legal complaint [by California], however, a similar nuisance suit that
was brought by attorneys-general against utilities was dismissed by a
federal court in New York."