Lawyers for the young plaintiffs will argue that the state’s ongoing support for polluting fuels like coal and natural gas violates a state constitutional provision that guarantees them a right to a “clean and healthful environment." They will ask Judge Kathy Seeley, who is presiding over the two-week trial, to issue a declaratory judgment to that effect.
The plaintiffs originally had sought an injunction ordering the state to develop a remedial plan or policies to reduce emissions. But Seeley rejected that bid in 2021, since she said it would require the court to make policy decisions better left to other branches of government. The lawsuit claims the government’s “systemic authorization, permitting, encouragement and facilitation” of fossil fuel use is exacerbating the climate crisis, despite what they say is an affirmative duty under a 1972 amendment to the Montana Constitution to protect and improve the environment for past and future generations.