In Montana, Children File Suit to Protect ‘the Last Best Place’

Old lodgepole pines in Montana killed by the mountain pine beetle stand beside young, healthy trees in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest. As climate change makes summers hotter and drier in the Northern Rockies, forests are threatened with increasing insect infestations, including the mountain pine beetle outbreak. Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images She’s identified only as Kathryn Grace S., one of 16 youths who’ve sued to keep the state of Montana from promoting the use of fossil fuels, threatening their future. To read the 108-page complaint , filed in March, is to understand that they’re fighting for what Montanans call "the last best place." Grace, 16, says in the complaint that drought has dried up the Clark Fork River for rafting. Georgianna F., 17, fears shortened winters have reduced snow she needs to train for Nordic skiing. Our stories. Your inbox. Every weekend. Ruby D., 11, of Crow descent, claims frequent wildfires have scarred lodgepole pines needed for the teepees essential for the ceremonies that are part of her identity. While lawyers for the state responded last week in briefs that the courts aren’t the right place to fix the climate crisis, attorneys for the children say they are suing Montana […]

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