A new report by the Center for Climate Integrity (CCI) calculating the costs of adapting to sea level rise is little more than a poorly masked public relations endeavor, seeking to fuel the campaign pressuring cities across the United States into pursuing litigation against energy companies. While some outlets fell for the full court press, other saw past the masquerade. CCI is not a mere “environmental advocacy group;” it describes itself as a “project of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (IGSD)” that “supports litigation and advocacy to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for their fair share of the escalating costs of adapting to climate change.”

CCI launched a new website to house their report, which allows guests to investigate their local costs of adaptation. However, each city navigates to the same landing page, which touts the falsified narrative of the #ExxonKnew campaign:

“Big oil and gas companies like Exxon knew since the 1970s that burning fossil fuels would warm the planet with devastating consequences. Instead of working to curb the risk, they spent millions to create and promote climate denial and obstruct action when it mattered most. Now they want taxpayers to foot the entire bill for all the damages. Communities cannot afford the massive costs of climate adaptation on their own. These costs weren’t always inevitable. Now that they are, polluters should pay their fair share.”

Read the full post at EIDClimate.org