A federal judge in Eugene, Oregon, has denied the federal government's motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by 21 youth plaintiffs over global warming.

The children, whose ages range from nine to twenty, claim in their class action lawsuit that President Obama, the fossil fuel industry, and other federal agencies are violating their constitutional rights by declining to take action against climate change.

"We are standing here to fight and protect everything that we love—from our land to our waters to the mountains to the rivers and forests,” Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, a 16-year-old plaintiff said. “This is the moment where we decide what kind of legacy we are going to leave behind for future generations.”

 Despite the defendants' request to throw out the lawsuit, the judge ruled otherwise, calling man-made climate change an "undisputed fact".

"Federal courts too often have been cautious and overly deferential in the arena of environmental law, and the world has suffered for it," wrote U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken in her ruling.

—Source:  slashdot.org and time.com