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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 4, 2015)
NATION/WORLD Wednesday, November 4, 2015 East Oregonian Page 7A Youths suing to push government on climate change By PHUONG LE Associated Press SEATTLE — They can’t vote yet, but dozens of young people want a say in the planet’s future, so minors nationwide have been suing states and the federal govern- ment in recent years to push action on climate change. They say their genera- tion will bear the brunt of global warming and that government at every level has an obligation to protect natural resources, including the atmosphere, as a “public trust” for future generations. The Oregon-based nonpro¿t Our &hildren’s Trust has been leading efforts to ¿le lawsuits or admin- istrative petitions in every state and against the federal government. Some of the youth-led cases have been dismissed, while others are pending in states including Massachusetts, Pennsyl- vania, 1orth &arolina and Oregon. “None of them have gotten to the ¿nish line,” said Michael Gerrard, a professor and director of the Sabin &enter for &limate &hange Law at &olumbia 8niversity. “It’s an uphill climb. The 8.S. courts have so far not wanted to set climate policy.” Other experts say it’s unclear how a state can combat a global problem. In Seattle, eight activists between ages 10 and 15 peti- tioned Washington state last year to adopt stricter science- based regulations to protect them against climate change. The case has been moving through a state court, and oral arguments are scheduled Tuesday. “We’re the ones who have to live with it if the oceans are acidic and the planet is 5 degrees warmer,” said Gabriel Mandell, 13, an eighth-grader and plaintiff in the case. “The snowpack AP Photo/Elaine Thompson In this photo taken Oct. 28, teenage environmental activists Aji Piper, left, 15, Lara Fain, 13, Gabriel Mandell, 13, and Wren Wagenbach, 14, playfully pose for a photo after a rally they spoke at in Seattle. The four are among eight youth activists who petitioned Washington state last year to adopt stricter science-based regulations to protect them against climate change. is melting. Ocean is acidi- fying. The Earth is warming. Everything that can go wrong is going wrong, and we need to ¿x it.” Mandell and other youths represented by the Western Environmental Law &enter argue that Washington state has failed to reduce carbon emissions based on the best available science. They say the government has violated its duties under the state constitution and the legal principle called the public trust doctrine, which requires the government to protect shared resources. The state said in court documents that the Wash- ington Department of Ecology department was working on adopting a rule to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. “&limate change is the most important environ- mental problem,” said Stu &lark, Washington’s air quality program manager. “We need to do whatever we can. We are doing what we can with what we have.” Nationwide, the cases need to pass certain legal hurdles, such as establishing that the public trust doctrine applies to the Earth’s atmo- sphere or that the children have standing to sue. The cases have cleared some hurdles but not all, said Gerrard, the professor. “I don’t think this litiga- tion is going to be successful because climate change is a global problem, and it’s not clear what a state could do,” added Richard Stewart, a law professor at New York 8niversity. “A state could do certain things, but it can only make an in¿nitesimal contri- bution” to a global problem. In Oregon, two Eugene teens are appealing after a state judge rejected their petition in May. The judge ruled that Oregon’s public two sides have not met since &hiang .ai-shek’s Nationalists lost the &hinese civil war to Mao Zedong’s &ommunists and the Nationalists rebased in Taiwan 100 miles away in 1949. The two sides have been separately ruled since then with Taiwan evolving into a freewheeling democracy. &hina insists that the two sides eventually reunite, by force if necessary. many of its vehicles had software that allowed them to deceive 8.S. nitrogen oxide tests. &EO Matthias Mueller promised Tuesday that Volkswagen “will relentlessly and completely clarify what has happened.” The news is the latest in a string of problems identi¿ed with Volkswagen emissions, which have caused share prices to plummet. In September, the company admitted it had installed software designed to defeat tests for nitrogen oxide emissions for four- cylinder diesel engines on 11 million cars worldwide, including almost 500,000 in the 8.S. It has already set aside $7.4 billion to cover the costs of recalling those vehicles — and analysts expect the emissions scandal to cost the company much more than that. trust doctrine does not apply to the atmosphere, water, beaches and shorelines. In August, 21 youths across the country sued the federal government, alleging that approval of fossil fuel development has violated the fundamental right of citizens to be free from government actions that harm life, liberty and property. The EPA did not comment on speci¿cs of the lawsuit but said in a statement that President Barack Obama and the agency have been taking action to “give our kids and grandkids the cleaner, safer future they deserve.” Aji Piper, 15, a Seattle high school sophomore, is a plaintiff in that case and the one in Washington state. “The government isn’t doing the best to assure that we have the best quality of life,” he said. “It holds more urgency for us. Our future is at hand.” As scientists worry, 8.S. public doesn’t WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are hot but not too bothered by global warming. Most Americans know the climate is changing, but they say they are just not that worried about it, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NOR& &enter for Public Affairs Research. And that is keeping the American public from demanding and getting the changes that are necessary to prevent global warming from reaching a crisis, according to climate and social scientists. As top-level international negotiations to try to limit greenhouse gas emissions start later this month in Paris, the AP-NOR& poll taken in mid-October shows about two out of three Americans accept global warming and the vast majority of those say human activities are at least part of the cause. However, fewer than one in four Americans are extremely or very worried about it, according the poll of 1,058 people. About one out of three Americans are moderately worried and the highest percentage of those polled — 38 percent — were not too worried or not at all worried. BRIEFLY Taiwan, Chinese presidents to meet IRU¿UVWWLPH since 1949 BEI-ING (AP) — &hina con¿rmed Wednesday that President Xi Jinping will meet this weekend with Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou in a historic ¿rst culminating nearly eight years of quickly improved relations between the two sides. News of the meeting Saturday in Singapore from the &hinese &abinet’s Taiwan Affairs Of¿ce came hours after the Taiwanese side announced the meeting earlier Wednesday. The two would be meeting in their capacity as “leaders of the two sides” of the Taiwan Strait, of¿ce director Zhang Zhijun was quoted as saying in a news release posted on the of¿ce’s website. That appeared to afford them equal status, possibly an effort to blunt criticism from the pro-independence opposition in Taiwan who accuse Ma’s Nationalist Party of pandering to &hina’s ruling &ommunists. Presidents of the Germany’s VW: New C02 problems with 800,000 vehicles BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s Volkswagen, already reeling from the fallout of cheating on 8.S. emissions tests for nitrogen oxide, said Tuesday that an internal investigation has revealed “unexplained inconsistencies” in the carbon dioxide emissions from 800,000 of its vehicles — a development it said could cost the company another $2.2 billion. The investigation was undertaken by the company after the revelations that UN refugee chief: funding shortage triggered Europe arrivals 8NITED NATIONS (AP) — The combined resources of 8.N. agencies, the Red &ross and humanitarian organizations are no longer enough to protect the 60 million people displaced by war and persecution around the world, the 8.N. refugee chief said Tuesday. Governments, private citizens, corporations and foundations have provided the of¿ce of the 8.N. High &ommissioner for Refugees with a record $3.3 billion last year, Antonio Guterres told the General Assembly’s human rights committee. Yet humanitarian budgets aren’t enough “to cover even the bare minimum, and we are starting to see what happens as a result of that,” he said. Guterres said “the trigger” for the mass arrival of Syrians, Iraqis, Afghans and Eritreans in the eastern Mediterranean this year “is the humanitarian funding shortfall.” He also cited two longer-term trends: After years in exile most of the four million Syrian refugees in neighboring countries have depleted their savings and lost hope of a political solution to end the nearly ¿ve-year conÀict. &urrently, Guterres said, 70 percent of Syrian refugees in Lebanon are living in “extreme poverty” and 86 percent in urban areas of Jordan are living below the poverty line. 7DNDWD¿QHG $70 million over exploding air bags DETROIT (AP) — 8.S. auto safety regulators ¿ned Japan’s Takata &orp. $70 million Tuesday for concealing evidence for years that its air bags are prone to explode with grisly consequences — a defect linked to eight deaths and more than 100 injuries. 8nder an agreement with the government, Takata will phase out manufacture of air bag inÀators that use ammonium nitrate, the propellant blamed for the explosions. It also agreed to a schedule over the next two years for replacing many of the devices already in use. And unless it can prove they are safe, Takata may have to recall all its inÀators, even those not yet implicated in the mess. The company admitted that it knew for years that the inÀators were defective. McKay Creek Estates presents: SAFETY FIRST S Join us as we host a lecture series to increase safety awareness on fall prevention, common home injuries and provide solutions to keep you and your loved one safe! SafetyMan says “Always be Safe to Ensure an Active & Independent Lifestyle” DON’T MISS OUT! Celebrate Your Loved Ones in Our Living with Lower Cholesterol TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 3:30 PM Veterans Day Join us for an afternoon to increase your understanding of cholesterol levels and how proper diet and nutrition can be combined with exercise and medications to keep your cholesterol levels in check. Learn the consequences and risks to your health when cholesterol reaches unhealthy levels. SALUTE Staff Sergeant Joel Davis US Marines Veteran Honoring those who have served and those that are currently serving our country! Example Advance Directives TUESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 3:30 PM What is an Advance Directive? When a loved one is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease there are many questions. One of the most confusing aspects can be the legal documents that need to be signed while your loved one can still make decisions. Bring us a picture of your servicemen or servicewomen or veteran by November 5 th along with the form below and we will include them in our “Veterans Day Salute” on November 11 th in the East Oregonian and Hermiston Herald at no charge. For more information, call Paula at 1-800-522-0255 or Hermiston Herald at 541-564-4530. Service Person’s Name Military Branch Your Name Your Address Your Phone Number For more information or to RSVP, call us at (541) 276-1987 or visit us today! Military Rank Currently Serving Veteran (Check One) Deliver to: East Oregonian 211 SE Byers Ave. • Pendleton, OR Hermiston Herald 333 E. Main. • Hermiston, OR or e-mail to classifieds@eastoregonian.com McKay Creek Estates 1601 Southgate Place Pendleton, Oregon 97801 www.PrestigeCare.com