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California Sues Five Oil Giants Over Climate Crisis

California accused BP, Shell, Exxon, ConocoPhillips and Chevron of longstanding efforts to hide their contributions to climate change.

California has taken the extraordinary step of seeking compensation from five fossil fuel corporations for damages due to their contributions to climate change, the state alleged in a lawsuit announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom Saturday. The suit, filed by the state’s Attorney General Rob Bonta, targets five companies: BP, Shell, Exxon, ConocoPhillips and Chevron, the latter of which has its headquarters in the state. “The companies that have polluted our air, choked our skies with smoke, wreaked havoc on our water cycle, and contaminated our lands must be made to mitigate the harms they have brought upon the State,” the lawsuit reads. California accused the companies of knowing about the relationship between their enterprises and the climate crisis for years and of working to suppress that knowledge in efforts to delay action on climate change.