alaska

THE YOUTH PLAINTIFFS’ CLAIMS:

The eight youth plaintiffs, many of whom are Alaska Natives, are on the frontlines of the climate crisis and already experiencing serious harms to their health, safety, and access to natural resources they depend on, including for subsistence and cultural traditions. Much of Alaska is warming four times faster than the global average, causing massive wildlife population declines, melting sea ice, permafrost, and glaciers, altering precipitation patterns, increasing severe storms, and leading to more intense wildfires and ocean acidification. The youth plaintiffs are already experiencing flooding, land subsidence, and accelerating erosion that threatens their homes and communities, increasing smoke from wildfires, food and water insecurity, and other profound harms from the climate crisis.  

At a time when the scientific consensus is that GHG emissions must be rapidly reduced to avert catastrophic harm to youth and future generations, the Alaska LNG Project would roughly triple Alaska’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for decades, increasing climate harms to Alaska’s youth.  

In their case, the youth are challenging the law that requires AGDC, a state-created corporation, to advance and develop the Alaska LNG project. The youth claim the state’s policy and actions that support the project violate their rights under Alaska’s Constitution, including their right to a climate system that sustains human life, and their rights to equal access and sustained yields of the public trust resources their lives, health, and cultural traditions depend on. 

Alaska’s constitution does not allow the state government to prioritize fossil fuels above the health, safety, cultures, and future of Alaska’s youth.    

What the Youth Plaintiffs Are Asking For: 

The youth are seeking a judgement from Alaska’s courts declaring that the law requiring the State to advance and develop the Alaska LNG Project violates their public trust and substantive due process rights, including their right to a climate system that sustains human life, under Article VIII and Article 1, section 7 of Alaska’s Constitution. The youth are also asking for an order prohibiting the State from moving forward with the project. 

The Alaska LNG Project: 

The Alaska LNG Project is designed to unleash immense quantities of natural gas located on Alaska’s North Slope and consists of a gas treatment plant, an 800-mile pipeline to transport the gas from the north slope to the Southcentral Alaska coast, and a liquified natural gas plant to liquify the natural gas for export. The Project would carry up to 3.9 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day and is intended to operate for at least 30 years.  

CURRENT STATUS:

The 8 youth plaintiffs filed their constitutional climate lawsuit on May 22, 2024, at the Superior Court for the State of Alaska, Third Judicial District at Anchorage. Defendants must respond to the complaint within 40 days.