The lawsuit claims that major oil and gas companies knowingly harmed the climate with their main product, causing significant damage to Bucks County over many years.
Bucks County filed the lawsuit in the Court of Common Pleas against the leading fossil fuel companies, stating that they have experienced and will continue to experience severe and harmful weather events as a result of the companies' actions. This is the first lawsuit of its kind filed by a Pennsylvania county.
The lawsuit is seeking an unspecified amount from oil and gas giants BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, Phillips 66, Shell, and API for the damages caused by their deceptive campaign, similar to that of big tobacco. The county aims to recover costs and finance public projects to better handle future severe events.
In response to the lawsuit, Chevron Corporation's counsel, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., dismissed the action as without merit.
Chevron Corporation's counsel stated that tackling climate change requires an international policy response and criticized local litigation over lawful and necessary energy production as baseless, referring to a U.S. Appeals Court statement from a previous case.
The county's lawsuit alleges that the companies were well aware for decades of the impact their product would have on the climate, yet chose to deceive rather than disclose the information.
County Commissioner Gene DiGirolamo emphasized that these companies have known since at least the 1950s about the disastrous effects of their business practices on the planet, but instead of making changes or raising alarms, they lied to the public.
