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Two counties and a city in California have filed separate Superior Court lawsuits against 37 oil and coal companies seeking damages related to fossil fuel development, which the communities allege has resulted in climate-related problems in their areas. Their lawsuits are "a first-of-its-kind challenge that some liken to the high-stakes litigation of the tobacco industry in the 1990s," writes Kurtis Alexander.

Two counties and a city in California have filed separate Superior Court lawsuits against 37 oil and coal companies seeking damages related to fossil fuel development, which the communities allege has resulted in climate-related problems in their areas. Their lawsuits are "a first-of-its-kind challenge that some liken to the high-stakes litigation of the tobacco industry in the 1990s," writes Kurtis Alexander.

Washington is suing Monsanto over widespread PCBs contamination, the first U.S. state to take such an action. Gov. Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced the lawsuit, filed in King County Superior Court, at a press conference in Seattle on Thursday. According to the Associated Press, Washington is seeking damages on several grounds, including product liability for Monsanto's alleged failure to warn about the dangers of PCBs; negligence; and trespass for injuring the state's natural resources.

Environmental advocacy organizations Earthjustice, the Center for Biological Diversity, and Friends of the Earth filed a lawsuit against the EPA to accelerate the completion of an "endangerment finding" that would allow the agency to regulate CO2 emissions from U.S. aircraft. The EPA was expected to finalize a proposal for an endangerment finding in mid-2014. 

On Friday, a group of children suing the government for inaction on climate change scored a major victory, as a judge ruled that the Washington State Department of Ecology must deliver an emissions reduction rule by the end of this year. That decision follows another major win in mid-April, when an Oregon judge ruled that a similar lawsuit could go forward despite opposition from the fossil fuel industry.

historian tries to hold oil and gas companies responsible for Louisiana's disappearing coast

Delta Air Lines has joined oil industry trade groups in fighting the US biofuel mandate. Through its refinery unit, Monroe Energy, Delta has filed a lawsuit in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit challenging the EPA's 2013 renewable fuel requirements, FuelFix reports.

CEH filed lawsuits against four personal care product manufacturers after it found evidence of a toxic substance, cocamide Diethanolamine (cocamide DEA) in their shampoos, soaps and other personal care products. The nonprofit firm also sent letters to approximately 100 firms whose products also tested positive.

The Sierra Club on Monday filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Energy demanding that DOE identify the groups and individuals it consulted with on a soon-to-be released nationwide electric grid reliability study. "We want to make sure that when this study is finally released, that the public and policy makers fully understand how [DOE] went about doing it, who they were influenced by, and whose views they did not take into consideration," said Sierra Club attorney Casey Roberts.

A group of environmental organizations sued the US Forest Service on Tuesday, claiming that it allowed Nestlé to illegally divert millions of gallons of water from California's San Bernadino National Forest to use for Arrowhead brand bottled water while the state struggles through a historic drought.

As the Arctic melts, oil companies are moving in to drill for more oil. Next year, the Norwegian owned oil company Statoil will drill further north than ever - unless we stop them. An unprecedented case was filed this morning that could do just that. This case is about holding back the oil industry at this final frontier, it is about protecting the beautiful Arctic, and it is about people stepping up to hold governments to account. If we win, millions of barrels of oil could be kept in the ground. We will argue in court that we must take action to keep the Paris climate agreement on track, and we will invoke Norway's constitutional right to a healthy and safe environment for future generations.

TransCanada wants the US to pay it $15 billion to recoup costs and damages related to President Barack Obama's refusal to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline. In addition to planning the claim under the North American Free Trade Agreement, the company sued the US government in federal court in Texas, claiming Obama's November decision exceeded his constitutional authority.

India's booming population and rapidly expanding urban areas have exacted a huge toll on its rivers, which are badly polluted and choked by development. But in cities across India, activists are heading to court to force municipalities and states to take action.