CIEL Statement on US AG’s Announcement of Climate Action Coalition and Investigation into Fossil Fuel Companies

For Immediate Release:
March 29, 2016

 

Carroll Muffett, CIEL President, statement on US Attorneys General Press Conference on Climate Action Coalition and Investigations into Fossil Fuel Companies:

“Today’s announcement demonstrates that rising public concerns over climate deception are well-founded.  It also highlights the gravity of the situation facing Exxon and other companies that spent decades undermining climate science. A critical mass of states now considers the evidence against Exxon sufficiently serious to justify exploratory cooperation on climate related investigations and to justify the use of words like “misinformation”, “deception” and — most significantly — “fraud.” We expect AGs from other states to follow suit.

“Just as climate change itself touches all of us, fossil fuel companies’ operations and misinformation campaign spanned the country, affecting investors and consumers in every U.S. territory and beyond.  By pooling investigative resources and leveraging their combined jurisdictional reach, state AGs can untangle the complex web of climate deception faster and more effectively than by acting alone.  That is good news for the climate—and likely to prove very bad news for Exxon.”

-//-

Note: Today’s press conference brings the number of state AGs who have confirmed investigation into #ExxonKnew to five: New York, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, and US Virgin Islands.