US governments are suing the world's largest oil companies for making climate change a 'public nuisance'

Get the Full StoryLocal governments are suing big oil companies, alleging that higher sea levels brought about by climate change are a public nuisance.

California, Washington state, and New York City are hoping lawsuits will force these companies to foot the bill for the effects of climate change.

Rhode Island became the first state to take this step, when it sued 21 oil and gas companies "for knowingly contributing to climate change and the catastrophic consequences to the State and its residents, economy, eco-system, and infrastructure."

Several researchers have concluded that sea level rise and a warming ocean played a major role in making Superstorm Sandy so catastrophic.

Thanks to climate change, sea levels are rising and storm surges are becoming more costly and frequent. Since most American state and local governments are cash-strapped, cities and counties fear that they won't be able to afford all the construction it will take to protect their people and property.

So some communities in California and Washington state, as well as New York City, are suing oil companies in a bid to force them to foot the bill. Recently, Rhode Island became the first state to take this step, when it sued 21 oil and gas companies "for knowingly contributing to climate change and the catastrophic consequences to the State and its residents, economy, eco-system, and infrastructure."See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: A diehard Mac user switches to PCSee Also:Meet the foodies who are changing the way Americans eat5,000 lawsuits claim Monsanto's Roundup weed-killer caused cancer hundreds will now proceed to trialPsychology says your brain is never going to run out of problems to findSEE ALSO: New York City's extreme heat created this stormy, apocalyptic cloudscape

Share: