By Sheila Ruth and Jen Terrasa for The Baltimore Sun
From rampant flooding and extreme heat to severe wildfire smoke blanketing our skies, climate change is here and posing an ever increasing threat to our public health and infrastructure. As the costs of damage caused by climate change continue to add up, it’s only reasonable for those who have played a major role in the climate crisis we find ourselves in today to pay their fair share of the bill rather than leaving it all on the taxpayers.
Fossil fuel companies knew their products would cause climate disaster decades ago, but they have fought relentlessly to resist regulations while actively spreading disinformation in order to keep polluting and getting rich at our expense. Now, three Maryland jurisdictions — Baltimore, Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County — have filed lawsuits to make Big Oil companies like ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Shell pay to help clean up the mess they made.
But the damages caused by the oil industry’s pollution and deception aren’t limited to these communities. Residents all across Maryland have experienced similar damages and are thus also paying the price for the climate crisis. That’s why we sponsored legislation to make sure our Attorney General’s Office has the resources necessary to take climate polluters to court on behalf of all Marylanders.
Unfortunately, but predictably, a recent commentary in The Baltimore Sun repeats misleading oil industry narratives about these types of suits (”Climate lawsuits are the wrong strategy in the fight for climate action,” May 26). First, to be clear, these suits are not policy setting, they are focused on getting relief for taxpayers who have continued to pay for damage caused by the giant oil corporations’ pollution and deception. Fossil fuel companies knew their products would cause climate disaster decades ago. Exxon’s own scientists predicted our current climate catastrophe with startling accuracy in the 1970s. But instead of sharing the information and changing their business model based on their own research, they chose to hide the truth, discredit the science, and continue business as usual. To call these suits baseless, as the May 26 op-ed did, is disingenuous given what we now know to be true.
Additionally, the commentary claims that the lawsuits are going to make our daily lives more expensive. However, taxpayers are already paying millions, and it’s the industry’s actions that have made our lives more costly. The author also claims the lawsuits are political and characterizes them as a money grab. Attempting to force the giant oil corporations to pay the ever increasing costs of climate change caused by their actions is hardly a money grab. These corporations spent decades reaping billions of dollars in profits while deceiving the public. Nor is bringing suits in a court of law a political action. Rather, it is sensible to recoup the current and future losses paid by local and state governments with taxpayer money.
After a string of lower court victories, and a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, Baltimore, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County are now closer than ever to putting fossil fuel polluters on trial and presenting the evidence of how — just like tobacco and opioid companies — they knew and lied about the catastrophic consequences of the products they sell. Dozens of other states and communities, including Delaware, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. have filed similar lawsuits, and all are moving forward in court.
Oil companies are clearly worried about being exposed for their deception and direct role in contributing to climate change and the recent op-ed is just the latest example of this disinformation campaign. The author cites the Manufacturers’ Accountability Project, a notable Big Oil front group. Obviously, manufacturers would prefer not to be sued and would rather we all just move on, leaving the taxpayer holding the bag. But the question of who should pay for damages that corporations knowingly caused is one for the courts — that’s why judges at every level have allowed these cases to advance.
Climate accountability lawsuits are how we can make oil and gas giants stop spreading lies, take responsibility for their role in the climate crisis, and pay for the harms they’ve caused. From tobacco companies to opioid manufacturers, our attorney general’s office has a proud history of taking on corporations when they’ve engaged in deceptive and fraudulent conduct.
Now is the time for Maryland to hold the oil industry accountable.
— Sheila Ruth and Jen Terrasa, Annapolis
The writers, both Democrats, represent Districts 44B (Baltimore County) and 13 (Howard County), respectively, in the Maryland House of Delegates.
This originally appeared in the Baltimore Sun.