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Tuesday, three teenagers filed a climate change petition for rulemaking with the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission. The petition calls on the commission to reduce North Carolina’s CO2 emissions to zero by 2050, in accordance with the best available science.
Youth petitioners argue that the commission has statutory, public trust and constitutional obligations to protect North Carolina’s essential natural resources, including the atmosphere, for present and future generations. As detailed in the petition, the proposed rule could create jobs, reduce energy costs and avoid billions in climate damages.
With the support of Our Children’s Trust, Alliance for Climate Education and represented by Duke’s Environmental Law & Policy Clinic, the petitioners are the latest group of young people from across the country to file legal action seeking science-based action by governments to secure a safe climate and healthy future.
“With a family history of lung disease and a love for hiking, I have personally experienced both the negative health impacts of pollution and the steady destruction of our most important natural resources, our national and state parks, due to climate change and higher CO2 emissions,” Arya Pontula, 17-year-old petitioner and Alliance for Climate Education fellow from Raleigh, said.
“I hope this petition pushes our state to take concrete steps to reduce CO2 emissions, thus ensuring cleaner air for all generations. The bottom line is that, when it comes to our health, we have no other choice but to set our differences aside and work towards a common goal for cleaner, breathable air and preservation of our natural resources,” Pontula added.
“North Carolina’s laws declare that the Environmental Management Commission must protect water and air resources for the benefit of all, not shield polluters through delaying tactics,” Ryke Longest, Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic director, said. “It is long past time for the commission to act on the best available science and commit to reducing carbon dioxide emissions to zero in time for the climate to stabilize.”
The North Carolina petition is one of many related legal actions supported by Our Children’s Trust and brought by youth in several states and countries, including Juliana v. United States, seeking science-based action by governments to secure a safe climate and healthy atmosphere for present and future generations.