Larry Gibson and the Lobster Boat - by James Hansen

This week Ken Ward and Jay O’Hara were to go on trial, threatened with 9 months in jail, for using their lobster boat, Henry David T., to block shipment of coal to Brayton Point power plant (Somerset, MA), one of the dirtiest coal-fired power plants in the United States.

I prepared a written testimony to help their defense.  It was never needed.  Their lawyer, Matt Pawa, is as brilliant as Schwarz.  Pawa has won important victories in the courts, including a case against automakers for resisting implementation of higher vehicle efficiencies.  In the present case, the District Attorney decided to drop all criminal charges against Ward and O’Hara, although they will each have to pay $2000 fines.

There are many brave people who recognize the climate crisis and are beginning to stand up and take personal risks to try to stop expansion of the fossil fuel industry, across the United States, in Canada, and in other nations.  Their courage is remarkable and I hope it has an awakening effect.

The courage displayed by Larry Gibson, Ken Ward, Jay O’Hara and a growing number of others is absent in our political leaders.  In the United States, both political parties kowtow to the fossil fuel industry.  One party simply denies the reality of human-caused climate change.  The other party feigns concern, advocating ineffectual costly policies such as renewable portfolio standards for utilities, while simultaneously approving development of dirty unconventional fossil fuels and continuation and expansion of drilling and mining of every fossil fuel that can be found.

Incredibly, given the clarity of scientific evidence on the danger of exploiting the unconventional fossil fuels, it is possible that the next Presidential candidates of both parties may favor building the Keystone XL pipeline.  This despite the fact that economic analyses show that a simple rising carbon fee in 10 years would reduce annual United States fossil fuel use ten times more than the volume of fuel carried by that enormous pipeline.  Politicians could explain that an honest price on fossil fuels would make our economy more efficient, help modernize our infrastructure, and improve our energy and national securities.  However, this would require understanding, honesty and courage, qualities that seem to be in short supply among our politicians.

What I would like to do, if I can find support for it, is play offense instead of defense.  Instead of using legal talent to defend protestors and minimize their penalties, we should file cases against the real culprits, our governmental leaders who are failing to protect the rights of all people, especially young people.  The basis for legal action, in my opinion, should be the most fundamental rights guaranteed by our Constitution.

The science is clear.  If we do not phase down fossil fuel emissions rapidly, we will hand young people a situation out of their control.  Our Constitution guarantees all people equal protection of the laws.  It says they cannot be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law.

Young people are people.  It is time to file suit against our governments, to ask the courts to require the government to present plans to phase down fossil fuel use at a pace that can stabilize climate, preserving nature and a future for young people, providing young people equal protection of the laws.

Larry Gibson and the Lobster Boat - by James Hansen