For years, Shell Oil has jeopardized the health and safety of New England coastal residents by constructing oil storage tanks right next to waterways and communities. Shell did it in New Haven, Connecticut, where oil storage tanks hulk next to New Haven Harbor. And it did it again in Providence, Rhode Island, where an oil storage terminal looms above the iconic Narragansett Bay.
A judge has denied Shell Oil’s attempt to halt a climate lawsuit from Conservation Law Foundation.
CLF is suing Big Oil to protect communities from dangerous facilities.
“While Shell tries every trick in the book to avoid coming clean about its involvement in the climate crisis, our community is in danger,” said Darrèll Brown, vice president of CLF Rhode Island.
“While Shell tries every trick in the book to avoid coming clean about its involvement in the climate crisis, our community is in danger” said Darrèll Brown, Vice President of CLF Rhode Island. “The evidence we have seen shows that the company has left this facility woefully unprepared for extreme weather. Major risks exist now and they’re only going to get worse as the oceans rise and storms intensify.”
“Despite Shell’s many efforts to obstruct our case and avoid producing evidence, the court has recognized that this important case will now proceed to trial,” said CLF President Bradley Campbell. “The company’s inconsistent positions about climate risk and unlawful operation of its New Haven facility are putting families, businesses, and local waters in harm’s way. This decision brings us one step closer to protecting New Haven communities and the surrounding environment from Shell’s unlawful conduct.
CLF is taking the oil giants to court in partnership with residents from the Everett, Providence, New Haven, and Quincy communities they’re harming. These lawsuits are the first of their kind, suing Big Oil companies for climate risks and pollution under the Clean Water Act and hazardous waste law.
“They’ve known since the 1970s that their products are damaging the climate,” said Darrell Brown, vice president of CLF Rhode Island. “But instead of protecting our communities from climate fallout, they’ve spent nearly 50 years and billions of dollars sowing doubt and deceit.”
