美몬태나주 법원, ‘깨끗하고 건강한 환경에서 살아갈 권리’ 첫 인정
The presiding judge in a Montana lawsuit, Held v. Montana, that alleges the state’s continued investment in fossil fuels violates young people’s right to a “clean and healthful environment” has ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, paving the way for similar litigation across the country in the fight for action on the climate crisis.
At the heart of the case are 16 young people who described how climate change has ravaged their short lives, such as seeing livestock killed by fluctuating weather patterns, and wildfire smoke that strains children with asthma. Montana's state constitution includes an inalienable right to a “clean and healthful environment,” and it’s on that basis that the complaint accuses the state of “neglecting their constitutional duty to preserve and protect the environment for future generations,” wrote Grist’s Katie Myers.