Utah’s highest court on Thursday ruled against a group of teens who say the state’s energy policies are hurting the climate, their health and their futures — and violating the Utah constitution.
The Utah Supreme Court unanimously upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss the youths' case. But the justices opened the door for them to file a new challenge.
“The decision opens a clear path forward for continuing our challenge to the state’s actions in promoting fossil fuel development,” said Andrew Welle, lead attorney for the youth through the nonprofit law firm Our Children’s Trust, in a statement Thursday.
“We won the vital ruling that no agency in Utah is required to authorize fossil fuel activities at the expense of children’s health,” he continued. “The state has full discretion to deny fossil fuel permits and say ‘no more’ to the industry. The state can fully embrace its renewable energy potential and leave its children a legacy of health.”
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The group of young people sued the state in 2022. They argued that Utah’s energy policies that support the development of fossil fuels — like oil, gas and coal — violate their constitutional right to life and health.
Burning fossil fuels has been proven to produce emissions that warm the planet and pollutants that can lead to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.
A district court judge dismissed the case later in 2022, but the teens appealed that decision. The Utah Supreme Court agreed to hear their appeal in 2023, and oral arguments took place last year.
“The youth plaintiffs contend that a favorable court judgment would ‘invalidate . . . unconstitutional statutory directives, removing the mandates under which’ the government defendants are harming them through unrestrained fossil fuel development,” the state Supreme Court’s Thursday ruling reads. “Although we agree that a favorable judgment would invalidate the challenged provisions, we disagree with the premise that the challenged provisions impose ‘directives’ or ‘mandates’ on the government.”
While upholding the decision to dismiss, the Supreme Court ordered that the lower court change its ruling to a dismissal without prejudice, meaning that the youth can file a new lawsuit.
“As we move forward, we remain steadfast in our demand that the state use its authority to reject fossil fuel development and safeguard our future,” said Natalie R., lead plaintiff in the case, in a Thursday statement. “Our commitment to advancing these crucial constitutional challenges is stronger than ever.”
This youth-led climate case is not the first of its kind. A judge in 2023 sided with a group of Montana teens who argued their state violated its constitutional commitment “to maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment” by prioritizing fossil fuel development.
The decision directed Montana state agencies and regulators to consider climate impacts when issuing permits for development. The Montana Supreme Court upheld that ruling late last year.
Almost one out of every 100 barrels of crude oil produced nationwide comes out of Utah, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The state accounts for 1.2% of U.S. coal and 1% of the nation’s natural gas.
Follow @HUFH4M![(Photo courtesy of Valerie Hamaker via Religion News Service) Nathan and Valerie Hamaker, co-hosts of the popular “Latter Day Struggles” podcast, have resigned their membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In a livestream Wednesday, Valerie explained that "as paradoxical as it may seem, it's because we care about this [faith] tradition that we are opening our mouths.”](https://www.sltrib.com/resizer/v2/7O7343CT2BDQDHODE2UJCSGVYI.jpg?auth=f79527b0639685af42e3f3ba6105184c4784821d8f85033e9be34ea500cbd3b9&width=111&quality=88)
