Radical climate organizations' dangerous activism was on display again in February, when a coalition of environmentalist groups sued the federal government over its repeal of an unscientific, politically-motivated 2009 endangerment finding.
For context, in 2007, the Supreme Court ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had to determine whether or not greenhouse gases (GHGs) like carbon dioxide imperil Americans’ health. In 2009, relying on faulty assumptions that policy groups like Independent Women have since debunked, the EPA declared that GHGs do imperil health. On that basis, it hyperregulated America’s vehicles and natural gas sector, causing serious harm to the U.S. economy without delivering promised emissions reductions.
Who are the organizations that brought the lawsuit? Judging by some of their names—Earthjustice, Environmental Defense Fund, Natural Resources Defense Council—they seem to be focused on protecting nature. However, the only thing they are preserving is their ability to restrict American prosperity. With their latest lawsuit, they seek to place a barrier squarely in the middle of the U.S. energy market.
America is blessed with natural resources. Just one part of America’s energy market, offshore oil and gas drilling, contributed over $30 billion to the economy in 2024 while $900 billion annually from related royalties conserve public lands and natural resources through the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The U.S. government is responsible for ensuring American companies are free to harness these plentiful resources, guided by rules. In our system, it is private actors that decide how to lawfully advance their economic interests—not the government.
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