Local government adds NW Natural to a $50B global warming lawsuit against fossil fuel companies including Exxon, Chevron and Shell.
Multnomah County has made NW Natural the first gas utility in the country to be sued for alleged lying about climate change.
In a circuit court filing this month, the state’s most populous county added NW Natural to a 2023 lawsuit against more than a dozen fossil fuel companies including Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Shell, according to the New York Times.
The $50 billion lawsuit alleges NW Natural knew it contributes to global warming by burning natural gas but misled customers about the consequences. The complaint alleges the companies cover up what they know about risks to the planet and they are responsible for climate change effects like 2021’s three-day “heat dome” that killed at least 69 Multnomah County residents.
It’s one of around two dozen lawsuits by state and local governments alleging oil companies covered up the dangers of climate change. Ten of those were brought by state attorneys general suing oil companies over alleged deception about the dangers of climate change. But the Times reports it’s the first instance of a gas utility named as a plaintiff.
Defendants in the Multnomah County case sought to move the case to federal court but a judge rejected the attempt.
In a statement to Oregon Business, the utility said the county was attempting to deflect after “failing to develop effective emission reduction policies.”
“The company is now reviewing the contents of the county’s claims and until this is complete, we cannot comment in detail,” senior director of communications David Roy wrote. “However, NW Natural believes adding the company to the suit at this later date is an attempt to divert attention from legal and factual flaws in the case. NW Natural will vigorously contest the County’s claims should they come to court.”
Exxon Mobil disputes the claims and cites investing more than $20 billion in lower-emission initiatives through 2027, the Times reports.
The original complaint named as defendants national consulting firm McKinsey & Company and international conglomerate Koch Industries.
“The baseless claims made in these politically motivated lawsuits do not advance any real solutions to address climate change,” Exxon Mobil said in a statement quoted by the NYT. “We’ll continue to fight these lawsuits and claims, and, more importantly, continue to be a leader in the energy transition.”
The suit claims tree ring data shows the 2021 heat dome was the hottest weather in the Pacific Northwest in recorded history, or since 950 AD.
“The heat dome that cost so much life and loss was not a natural weather event,” the lawsuit states. “It did not just happen because life can be cruel, nor can it be rationalized as simply a mystery of God’s will.”
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants knew about global warming since the 1950s and covered it up. Though the lawsuit seeks $50 billion, the county says it incurred more than $50 million in damages from wildfires and extreme heat, and that future economic damage would amount to at least $1.5 billion.
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