Pacific Northwest tribes are taking Big Oil to court

The Makah Indian Tribe and Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe are facing millions in costs to move their communities because of rising seas — and they’re demanding that Big Oil companies pay their fair share.

Two Pacific Northwest tribes are taking Big Oil companies to court to make them pay for the climate damages the tribes have suffered and will continue to endure because of the industry’s decades of lies.

The Makah Indian Tribe and Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe, two federally-recognized sovereign Native Nations that have lived in present-day northwest Washington State for millenia, have been forced to begin moving their communities to higher ground as sea level rise — accelerated by climate change — threatens their infrastructure and livelihoods. Big Oil companies like ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, and Chevron — all of which are named in the tribes’ lawsuits — have known for decades that the burning of their fossil fuel products contribute to rising seas and other climate damages, and chose to lie about it to protect their enormous profits.

“We are facing hundreds of millions of dollars in costs to relocate our community to higher ground and protect our people, our property, and our heritage,” said Charlene Nelson, chairwoman of the Shoalwater Bay Tribe. “These companies need to be held accountable for that.”

The Makah Indian Tribe and Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe are both surrounded by water and forests on the Olympic Peninsula — ecosystems that are closely linked with the tribes’ history and are being permanently altered by acidification, hotter temperatures, droughts, and other climate damages. The tribes are the latest to join dozens of communities across the country that have sued oil companies to make them pay for their climate deception and destruction. 

“We are seeing the effects of the climate crisis on our people, our land, and our resources.  The costs and consequences to us are overwhelming,” said Makah Tribal Council Chairman Timothy J. Greene, Sr. “We intend to hold these companies accountable for hiding the truth about climate change and the effects of burning fossil fuels. And we aim to force them to help pay for the high costs of surviving the catastrophe caused by the climate crisis.”

Image by Steven and Darusha/Flickr.