Opinion: California’s climate lawsuit ignores reality of fossil fuel emissions
An idle pump jack in Long Beach File photo by Chris Jennewein Times of San Diego Later this month California s legal system is poised to take the next step against American resource as the San Francisco Superior Court will hold a hearing on California s lawsuit against major strength producers Stemming from a lawsuit filed by Atty Gen Rob Bonta the state is seeking damages and penalties over global weather change blaming U S vigor companies Even though both the plaintiffs and defendants in this lawsuit clearly acknowledge fossil fuel s effects on surroundings change California policymakers continue to mislead the masses about the true state of global emissions and California s long role in supporting oil and gas pursuits The truth of global emissions reveals that American potency events are a small and declining source of greenhouse gas emissions GHG making environment lawsuits like these legally unsound and logically incoherent Ever since the cities of San Francisco and Oakland sued vitality companies in for alleged deceptive practices such state lawsuits have ballooned across the legal system Yet while activists are pushing state courts to rule against American potency the Supreme Court has long been clear about this Its unanimous opinion in American Electric Power Co v Connecticut affirmed that our national scheme outlines GHG regulation to be under the Environmental Protection Agency as per the Clean Air Act not the courts More so than the legal vulnerabilities of California s suit its premise that the U S is the worst polluter flies in the face of reality China accounts for of global emissions with the U S at second with only of emissions Since China has overtaken the U S as the world s top emitter and while U S total emissions are down to levels according to the EPA we are producing the bulk natural gas and oil ever This is because U S -based resource production not just in overly-regulatory states like California is among the the bulk prosperous and cleanest in the world in part thanks to our decades-long switch from dirtier coal to cleaner natural gas According to the Congressional Research Function U S capacity production increased from to natural gas grew yet coal declined by California is also not blameless in the lawsuit s central argument linking fossil fuel emissions and conditions change While the state has acknowledged the emissions-climate change link going back to it has for decades continued to endorsement fossil fuel production with inhabitants laws and codes such as establishing a State Oil and Gas Supervisor to encourage the wise enhancement of oil and gas tools And California continues to import oil from dirtier foreign sources to this day Of its top oil imports nearly all have a higher GHG emissions intensity than equivalent U S oil according to NOIA Oils from Iraq and Brazil California s top sources both produce higher GHG emissions Clearly California s actual strength procedures actions do not match the lawsuit s goals California s conditions lawsuit is a misguided attempt to stifle American ability production using legally unsound techniques If the lawsuit were to go forward this would limit domestic ability output and promote foreign coal and oil from China India Saudi Arabia and elsewhere The state s legal system must recognize these facts and move to dismiss as that will literally promote lower global emissions in the process John Doolittle is an attorney who represented the East San Francisco Bay area in the House of Representatives from to He served on the Committee on Natural Support the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and as the vice chairman of the Ability and Water Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee
