Hawaii Governor Josh Green officially announced plans to sue oil and gas companies for alleged climate damages – just months after his administration endorsed liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a critical tool to reduce emissions and keep energy costs down. 

In a Monday interview, Gov. Green listed off the wildfire damage settlements Hawaii had already received from the state itself – the County of Maui, Hawaii Telecom, and other entities, before suggesting it would also be “nice” to extract a payout from oil companies:   

“It would have been nice to have a couple billion extra dollars from the fossil fuel companies…” (emphasis added) 

The state’s push to turn lawsuits into a revenue stream was laid bare in a recent Hawaii County hearing, where a local official described potential climate litigation as “another source of funding.” 

The hypocrisy is thick. Hawaii – the most petroleum-dependent state in the entire nation – has built its economy, tourism, and power grid on fossil fuels, including LNG, which its own energy office recently called essential for reducing emissions and keeping costs down. Yet now, the state seeks to punish the very industry it relies on to keep the lights on and sustain its economy. 

Read more on EID Climate here.