Our wholistic approach to tackling climate change
By Maura Fahey | October 17, 2023
Courtney with Crag staff and Kelsey Juliana, plaintiff in Chernaik v. Brown, Nov. 2019.
This fall, I will celebrate 10 years of being an attorney at Crag. Throughout the years, I have had the opportunity to see firsthand how dedication and creativity can lead toresult in meaningful results in the fight to protect our climate. At Crag, our climate work has taken multiple forms, from challenging proposed fossil fuel projects to defending important climate policies to holding our government accountable forto taking meaningful action to address climate change.
When I was just a budding lawyer, Crag attorneys were in the early stages of some of our milestone cases. The fight against the Jordan Cove fracked gas export terminal was in full swing, almost a decade in to what would end up being a 17-year battle. Crag was going to court in Chernaik v. Brown, representing Oregon youth suing the state for its failure to protect the atmosphere for future generations. In each of these cases, there were victories and setbacks along the way. And despite the setbacks, Crag, our clients, and community partners have remained steadfast in securing a sustainable climate for the future. It is this dedication that has inspired me in my work throughout these past 10 years.
Youth protesting fracked gas in Jordan Cove. Photo by Rick Rappaport.
Youth protesters at a 2019 Portland climate march. Photo by Multnomah County. License bit.ly/44dKBAi
Alongside our clients, I have witnessed multiple large-scale fossil fuel infrastructure proposals crumble under the pressure of persistent community advocacy combined with strategic litigation. For almost a decade, we have held the line against efforts to convert high-value farmland at Port Westward to an industrial deep-water port to support a number of fossil fuel related uses.
Since 2016, I have worked with a coalition of groups to successfully defend Portland’s restrictions on new or expanded bulk fossil fuel terminals against industry attacks. This fall, I will appear in court alongside the State of Oregon to defend the Climate Protection Program, a landmark policy that sets a declining limit, or cap, on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels used throughout Oregon. And we continue to support our clients’ efforts to push our government leaders to do more to address the climate crisis and protect the most vulnerable communities from the impacts of climate change.
Climate change is the most pressing issue of our time. The impacts of climate change are being felt around the world and right here in the Pacific Northwest, and they are only going to get worse if we aren’t dedicated to taking meaningful and creative action now. Each year, we are seeing more and more extreme weather events that are impacting communities in unimaginable ways.
Though the climate crisis is daunting, I look forward to the work that is yet to come, to seeing what other creative paths we can pursue to secure climate justice. At Crag, we are committed to fighting climate change on multiple fronts and using all of the available tools in our legal toolbox to tackle this complex problem. We believe that everyone has the right to a safe and healthy environment, and that our environmental laws must work for everyone. Alongside our clients, we will continue to take on challenging cases and pursue novel solutions to protect the climate in the Pacific Northwest.
I’m proud to be a part of this work and what Crag and our clients have achieved thus far, and I’m excited to see what we can achieve in the years to come.
Maura Fahey, Managing Attorney
Maura’s docket consists of a variety of work including land use challenges. Maura is a member of the Oregon and Washington State Bars and is admitted to practice in the U.S. District of Oregon, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. In her free time, Maura enjoys backcountry skiing, hiking, biking, running, and exploring all the wonder the Pacific Northwest has to offer.