Can the Court System End Up Saving The Environment
It has been proven through the environmental history of the world that changes are not made until a group or the public pushes for improvements. In the case of the 1960s environmental movement, the push came from environmental publications like Rachel Carson's Silent Spring and countless other activists who were fed up with the government's lack of interest in environmental issues, such as poor water conditions and chemical use. In today's world, the fight is no longer against pesticide use or the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, but they are issues that are just as important. Today's environmental concerns mainly stem from the issue of global warming; an issue that is more ambiguous than the issues of the past. Though it is more difficult for environmental activists to place blame on specific groups than with previous issues, it has not stopped them from taking action. A growing trend in modern day environmental struggles is to turn to the court system to create change. This strategy has met mixed responses by the public at large; some people believe that the various law suits are a dangerous nuisance, while others believe it is the only way to save the environment today.
Those opposed to the use of legal action to bring about environmental change feel that the practice unfairly targets certain companies or individuals. These groups usually do not deny global warming, given that it would be very difficult to do so, but instead they feel that suing individual companies brings the issue of environmental law to a slippery slope. In their opinions, global warming is caused by the emissions of all of humanity, which makes it difficult to highlight the actions of one group over another. The vast number of environmental lawsuits leads to one frightening scenario; a point in time where average citizens can be sued for their carbon emissions. Many also believe that this practice will lead to the destruction of the Western economy by bringing down the few remaining powerful companies and their manufacturing operations. For these group it seems that environmental concerns should take a back seat to personal liberties and big business; a mentality that meets great opposition from environmental activists and lawyers.
Many people believe that the environment can be saved by the court system and are going to great lengths to prove it. The last decade has witnessed some of the most important environmental cases in history and for the first time, activists have been successful at making big corporations accountable for their environmental follies. In the case of Kivalina v. ExxonMobil, the small town of Kivalina, Alaska sued a combined 24 oil companies for damages to their town at the hands of climate change. A similar case was taken up against the Chevron oil company, which resulted in $8.6 billion being paid to damages sustained to various Ecuador jungle settlements. Cases such as these show corporations that they cannot damage the environment without paying for their actions and hopefully helps to prevent the same mistakes in the future. One of the most groundbreaking environmental lawsuits was Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2007. In a close Supreme Court ruling, it was found that the EPA should regulate carbon dioxide and other green house gas pollutants. It is from this case that it became mandatory for all large US corporations and suppliers to report their greenhouse gas and other similar information to the EPA. As a result of this legislation, corporations will now be held directly accountable for pollution they release into the atmosphere and can be fined for excessive emissions. The regulation and monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions has and will continue to have a positive effect on the environment. It is through examples like this and the dozens of environmental suits currently in progress, that we see the change that can come about from the court system. If used properly, the court system just may be able to save the environment.
A serow is caught walking around a Japanese village
