Vermont State House. Photo Credit: Creative Commons/Jared C. Benedict
September 24, 2024 (Montpelier, VT) – Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) filed a lawsuit against Vermont’s Secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources for not fulfilling her legal obligations under the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), which is critical for keeping the state on track to reduce harmful emissions contributing to climate change.
“Vermont families and businesses are still reeling from repeated deadly storms and flooding. Climate change is here and it’s time for transparency, honesty, and immediate action,” said Elena Mihaly, Vice President of Conservation Law Foundation Vermont. “We’re ready to do what it takes to ensure our decision makers don’t fumble their critical job of protecting Vermont for future generations. Our way of life, our health, and our environment depend on it.”
Vermont’s Global Warming Solutions Act passed in 2020. It makes sure that Vermont lowers its polluting emissions by turning the State’s existing emissions reduction goals into legally binding requirements, with benchmarks to hit along the way.
But the Secretary of Natural Resources’ flawed implementation of this climate law is undermining our collective opportunity to act swiftly in the face of frequent damaging and deadly flooding that is a direct result of our overheating planet. The Secretary has failed to adequately review and, if necessary, adopt or update rules by the July 1, 2024, review deadline to ensure the state is on track to meet its January 1, 2025, emissions reduction requirement .
The Agency has misinformed Vermonters, relying on flawed accounting modeling that led to an underrepresentation of our forecasted climate-damaging emissions. It has also not involved the public in the review process as required to do so.
CLF filed a notice of alleged violation in July 2024. The state has not joined us for requested settlement talks since that time.
CLF’s complaint can be found here.
CLF experts are available for further comment.
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