Judge to hear landmark climate change case brought by children alleging public health threat 

A federal judge this morning will hear oral arguments in the case Juliana v. U.S., a 2015 lawsuit brought by 21 children against the U.S. government, alleging that their future is under threat because of government inaction on climate change and the enforcement of other harmful policies. Among the reasons that the children — some of whom are now adults — provide are public health threats, including toxic air and water quality due to fracking and worsening wildfires. Several doctors and public health experts have also sent in briefs in support of the lawsuit, some of whom penned an article last week stating that “climate change is the greatest public health emergency of our time and is particularly harmful to fetuses, infants, children, and adolescents.” Today’s hearings will decide whether the lawsuit — which the government has fought to dismiss — moves to trial.