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-- OriginalOwner_ [tinyurl.com] writes:

from the first-of-its-kind-lawsuit dept.

The Conservation Law Foundation is taking Exxon to court over water pollution in Massachusetts [clf.org].

[In the Autumn of 2015], exposés by InsideClimate News [insideclimatenews.org][1] and the Los Angeles Times [latimes.com] confirmed that oil giant ExxonMobil knew as early as the late 1970s that climate change caused by human activities would be devastating if left unchecked. But instead of taking action, the corporation lied to the government, and to all of us, by funding an aggressive campaign trying to foment doubt about climate science.

So, we started our own investigation, focused on how this climate deceit has affected us closer to home. We found that despite knowing the harm [that] climate change could cause, ExxonMobil left its oil storage facility in Everett, MA on the Mystic [River] vulnerable to flooding from storms and rising seas. Now it's just a matter of time before a giant storm floods our streets with a toxic soup from Exxon's dilapidated facilities.

In an effort to finally hold ExxonMobil accountable for its climate deceit, gross negligence, and violations of federal pollution regulations, CLF today [September 29] officially filed suit [clf.org][PDF] against the corporate giant. It's a landmark suit, and not only because it's the first major lawsuit to be filed against the company since the #ExxonKnew [twitter.com] revelations were uncovered.

[...]This case presents a tremendous opportunity for change, and the potential to set a precedent for the dynamic role of local advocacy in taking on transnational corporations. It also shows us that no company, organization, or government agency is too big to be held responsible for its actions, and no one town or resident is too small or too weak to demand environmental justice.

[...]Learn more about the lawsuit here [clf.org].

[1] Data Transfer Interrupted Google cache [googleusercontent.com]

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