A Pennsylvania County Is Suing the Fossil Fuel Industry for Damages Linked to Climate Change
By Kiley Bense
On July 15, 2023, Pennsylvania’s Bucks County recorded seven inches of rainfall in just 45 minutes. Within two hours, the county was deluged by the same amount of rainwater that it normally accumulates in the entire month of July. Seven people were killed in the flooding, including two small children who were visiting Pennsylvania from South Carolina with their family and were on their way to a barbecue.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”