California sues automakers for environmental damage

[Holly_Hobby]

California is to sue carmakers for harm to the environment

From Chris Ayres in Los Angeles

Emissions lawsuit an 'intriguing development'

CALIFORNIA’S love affair with the car is officially over. In one of the most aggressive moves to confront global warming, the Golden State yesterday sued six car manufacturers, including Ford and General Motors, for damages related to pollution, beach erosion and a reduced drinking water supply.

The lawsuit follows a summer of record-breaking 49C (120F) temperatures in California that killed more than 100 people, and comes amid growing concern that Los Angeles would have to be abandoned if the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountains, which supplies most of the city’s drinking water, disappears by the end of the century, as some scientists predict.

Although no specific sum of compensation was mentioned in the lawsuit, the amount could easily be in the hundreds of millions. It is not clear how cash-strapped American carmakers could afford to pay.

...

It accused the car companies, which also included Toyota, DaimlerChrysler, Honda and Nissan, of creating a “public nuisance” by making vehicles that emit huge quantities of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.

...

http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,22749-2368036,00.html

[Coexist]

1. is this viable, or a publicity stunt?

it seems a little far-fetched, any legal minds out there?

[wtmusic]

2. It sounds ridiculous

CA could have banned those awful cars, but they were oh so helpful for making money. :eyes: