Download Word Document - North Country 350 Alliance

(Your mailing address)
(Your city, state, zipcode)
(Today’s date)
Senator Charles Schumer
Leo O’Brien Building, Room 420
Albany, NY 12207
Dear Senator Schumer,
I am turning to you, out of deep concern for climate change, to ask you to lead an effort to convince
President Obama to take a golden opportunity to create a climate legacy that cannot be unraveled in
the first days of the Trump administration. I am asking you to urge President Obama to come to the
table to reach a settlement with the twenty-one youths who filed a constitutional climate change
lawsuit against the federal government in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in 2015,
claiming their constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property have been violated by a government
that has failed to protect essential public trust (shared natural) resources. This settlement would be
legally binding on President-elect Trump when he takes office.
The federal government and fossil fuel companies have twice moved to have this case dismissed, and
twice the motion was denied, most recently on November 10, 2016 when Judge Ann Aiken wrote there
is “no doubt that the right to a climate system capable of sustaining human life is fundamental to a free
and ordered society. Just as marriage is the ‘foundation of the family,’ a stable climate is quite literally
the foundation of society, without which there would be neither civilization nor progress.” This case is
going to trial, and President Obama has the chance to change history.
Please urge the President to settle this case quickly before leaving office to prevent the incoming
President, who has promised to cancel the Paris Climate Agreement, dismantle the Environmental
Protection Agency, and open $5 trillion in new fossil fuel reserves, from doing so. This would legally
bind him to ensure a decent future for future generations. Trump’s intended actions will ensure
catastrophic climatic effects will be experienced; preventing his actions can help us to avoid the worst
of climatic effects. The choice is the President’s to make—IF he is even aware of this opportunity.
Specifically, I am calling on the President to create a legally binding settlement that has the following:




The conditions of the Paris Climate Treaty will be carried out.
No further permits for fossil fuel projects, including DAPL and Keystone, will be granted. (We must keep
80% of remaining reserves in the ground to avert the most catastrophic climate effects.)
An aggressive commitment to renewable and green energy and economy will be carried out.
EPA regulations protecting the climate and environment may not be eliminated without scientifically
backed support from credible sources.
Thank you, Senator, for your consideration. Please take this action immediately before it is too late.
Sincerely,
(Your mailing address)
(Your city, state, zipcode)
(Today’s date)
Senator Charles Schumer
322 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Schumer,
I am turning to you, out of deep concern for climate change, to ask you to lead an effort to convince
President Obama to take a golden opportunity to create a climate legacy that cannot be unraveled in
the first days of the Trump administration. I am asking you to urge President Obama to come to the
table to reach a settlement with the twenty-one youths who filed a constitutional climate change
lawsuit against the federal government in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in 2015,
claiming their constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property have been violated by a government
that has failed to protect essential public trust (shared natural) resources. This settlement would be
legally binding on President-elect Trump when he takes office.
The federal government and fossil fuel companies have twice moved to have this case dismissed, and
twice the motion was denied, most recently on November 10, 2016 when Judge Ann Aiken wrote there
is “no doubt that the right to a climate system capable of sustaining human life is fundamental to a free
and ordered society. Just as marriage is the ‘foundation of the family,’ a stable climate is quite literally
the foundation of society, without which there would be neither civilization nor progress.” This case is
going to trial, and President Obama has the chance to change history.
Please urge the President to settle this case quickly before leaving office to prevent the incoming
President, who has promised to cancel the Paris Climate Agreement, dismantle the Environmental
Protection Agency, and open $5 trillion in new fossil fuel reserves, from doing so. This would legally
bind him to ensure a decent future for future generations. Trump’s intended actions will ensure
catastrophic climatic effects will be experienced; preventing his actions can help us to avoid the worst
of climatic effects. The choice is the President’s to make—IF he is even aware of this opportunity.
Specifically, I am calling on the President to create a legally binding settlement that has the following:




The conditions of the Paris Climate Treaty will be carried out.
No further permits for fossil fuel projects, including DAPL and Keystone, will be granted. (We must keep
80% of remaining reserves in the ground to avert the most catastrophic climate effects.)
An aggressive commitment to renewable and green energy and economy will be carried out.
EPA regulations protecting the climate and environment may not be eliminated without scientifically
backed support from credible sources.
Thank you, Senator, for your consideration. Please take this action immediately before it is too late.
Sincerely,