Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet, and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall.
In the summer of 2022, 14 young people in Hawai’i filed a lawsuit against the state’s Department of Transportation, saying they weren’t doing enough to reach the state’s climate goals. The two sides recently reached a settlement, and we had our reporters Juliana Merullo and Will Malloy look into it for us.
Juliana Merullo: Hiya Megan!
Will Malloy: Hey there!
Megan Hall: So what was this lawsuit about?
Juliana Merullo: Basically, this group of young people said Hawai’i’s Department of Transportation, or HDOT, was violating two parts of the state constitution. The first is their right to a clean and healthful environment.
Will Malloy: And the second is called the “public trust doctrine.”
Megan Hall: What’s that?
Juliana Merullo: To find out, we talked to Marti Townsend. She works with the organizationEarthjustice, one of the firms that represented the plaintiffs.
Marti Townsend: The state has an obligation to manage natural and cultural resources in a way that does not hurt the interests and actually benefits the interests of Native Hawaiians and future generations.
Will Malloy: Many of the young people who filed the lawsuit are Native Hawaiians, and all of them had stories of how climate change has affected their lives.
Juliana Merullo: Some talked about how extreme rains and droughts are impacting their families’ farms. Others explained how sea level rise and changes in ocean temperatures are destroying coral reefs and fish populations they rely on.
Megan Hall: Ok, but why were they suing the Department of Transportation?
Juliana Merullo: Right now, transportation makes up almost half of Hawaii’s total emissions.
Will Malloy: The plaintiffs say that HDOT has continued to support projects that won’t help the state meet its climate goals of being carbon neutral by 2045. Reducing those emissions would be a key way to address climate change.
Juliana Merullo: So even if individuals are still driving their gas cars on state roads and taking flights between islands, Marti says that
Marti Townsend: There is quite a bit that the department of transportation can do to help us as individual system users to get around without carbon. And it’s things like, you know, providing the infrastructure for charging stations. It’s things like, you know, encouraging decisions that favor public transportation, buses for example.
Megan Hall: That makes sense. So what did the settlement win for the youth plaintiffs?
Will Malloy: HDOT now has a year to come up with a full roadmap to reach the target of zero emissions in 2045. This includes setting smaller goals that they have to meet every five years.
Juliana Merullo: And young people will have a say in all of this! The settlement also creates a new youth council, with at least two of the youth plaintiffs, as well as other young people who want to get involved. They’ll help give input on the plan, and get updates from HDOT.
Will Malloy: Marti also says that,
Marti Townsend: The key difference about this lawsuit versus other commitments that we’ve made in the past is that we have the court behind us to enforce any commitments that are made.
Megan Hall: That’s great! But looking at the big picture, what does this case mean?
Juliana Merullo: This was a really big win for the youth climate movement and the climate movement broadly. And it’s not just symbolic! As Marti says,
Marti Townsend: We got what we came for, and we got it faster than we expected.
Will Malloy: This is the second successful youth climate case in the past few years, after young people in Montana won a lawsuit against the state in 2023.
Juliana Merullo: Both states have clauses in their constitutions guaranteeing the right to a clean and healthful environment. So we’ll have to pay attention to court cases in other states with that same right.
Will Malloy: Young people are proving a point – state agencies’ decisions will affect us and future generations moving forward.
Megan Hall: Good to know! Thanks Juliana and Will.
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Possibly is a co-production of Brown University’s Institute for Environment and Society, Brown’s Climate Solutions Initiative, and the Public’s Radio.
