Sept. 2016

In what Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) describes as a “first-in-nation” lawsuit, the filing accuses ExxonMobil of endangering communities along the Mystic River in Massachusetts. The suit focuses on the company’s violation of the federal Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Given climate change impacts, CLF charges that even a category 1 storm could mean communities along the river are inundated with contaminants. “For more than three decades, ExxonMobil has devoted its resources to deceiving the public about climate science while using its knowledge about climate change to advance its business operations,” said CLF president Bradley Campbell. “Communities were put in danger and remain in danger, all to cut costs for one of the most profitable corporations in the world. It’s time to make Exxon answer for decades of false statements to the public and to regulators and ensure that its Everett facility meets its legal obligation to protect thousands of people and the Boston Harbor estuary from toxic water pollution.”