BOULDER, CO -- Three Colorado communities announced today they had filed a lawsuit against two mega oil companies demanding "accountability" for expenses that were predicted to be caused by climate change. The City and County of Boulder and San Miguel County filed a lawsuit against Suncor and ExxonMobil ("Exxon") with legal support from EarthRights International and Niskanen Center.

The government bodies said they wanted to recoup a predicted $100 million in costs that would be caused by climate change by 2050. Read the Press Release Below:

Colorado Communities File Lawsuit Against Oil Giants

for Climate Change Costs Costs of climate change impacts estimated to top one hundred million dollars by 2050 (Boulder, Colorado -- April 17, 2018) -- Today, the Colorado communities of Boulder County, San Miguel County, and the City of Boulder—with legal support from EarthRights International, Niskanen Center, and other co-counsel—filed a lawsuit against Suncor and ExxonMobil ("Exxon"), two oil companies with significant responsibility for climate change. The communities have demanded that these companies pay their fair share of the costs associated with climate change impacts, so that the costs do not fall disproportionately on taxpayers.

Climate change affects fragile high-altitude ecosystems and hits at the heart of these communities' local economies, affecting roads and bridges, parks and forests, buildings, farming and agriculture, the ski industry, and public open space. Adapting to such a wide range of impacts requires local governments to undertake unprecedented levels of planning and spending. Over the next three decades, these communities will face at least one hundred million dollars in costs to deal with the impacts of climate change caused by the use of fossil fuel products like those made and sold by Suncor and Exxon. Suncor and Exxon have known about the costly consequences of fossil fuel use for more than 50 years. Yet they continued to promote and sell their products, while recklessly deceiving the public and policymakers about the dangers.

In the past year, nine coastal communities in California and New York filed climate lawsuits against fossil fuel companies. This is the first such lawsuit in Colorado—or anywhere in the U.S. interior—aimed at holding fossil fuel companies accountable for paying their fair share of the costs of climate change.

Statements

"Climate change impacts are already happening and they are only going to get worse. In fact, Colorado is one of the fastest warming states in the nation. Climate change is not just about sea level rise. It affects all of us in the middle of the country as well." - Elise Jones, BoulderCounty Commissioner

"We are a small rural county dependent on tourism and farming and ranching. A natural disaster here could wipe out our reserves. Unabated fossil fuel production is already impacting our climate. These changes will grow more intense over time." - Hilary Cooper, San Miguel County Commissioner.



"Our communities and our taxpayers should not shoulder the cost of climate change adaptation alone. These oil companies need to pay their fair share." - Suzanne Jones, Mayor, City of Boulder "For over 50 years, Suncor and Exxon have known that fossil fuels would cause severe climate impacts. To enhance their own profits, they concealed this knowledge and spread doubt about science they knew to be correct. Now, communities all over this country are left to foot the bill." – Marco Simons, EarthRights International

