Fifteen young people from Wisconsin filed Dunn v. Wisconsin Public Service Commission Aug. 22. The youths alleged that Wisconsin’s climate laws prohibit the Public Service Commission from taking environmental impact into account when deciding where to place fossil fuel power stations.
The group filed the lawsuit through Our Children’s Trust, a public interest law firm representing exclusively children specializing in climate change, according to Our Children’s Trust.
According to the lawsuit, Wisconsin climate laws violate inherent constitutional rights and infringe on their lifestyle and general well-being.
The lawsuit outlined specific grievances of the 15 plaintiffs, including air pollution, Lake Chetek and Lake Warner’s developing algal blooms and wildfire smoke caused by climate change, according to the lawsuit. The suit outlined that children are more susceptible to air pollution and climate effects, as children’s growth demands more air, food and water than adults.
The plaintiffs’ claimed that Wisconsin laws are particularly harmful for the environment is supported by the notable difference in Wisconsin’s increasing temperatures and the increasing temperatures of nearby states, climate outreach specialist for the Wisconsin Climatology Office Amanda Schwabe said.
“Most, if not all, states in the U.S. are seeing warming trends throughout the year, but Wisconsin is warming faster than some of our neighboring states,” Schwabe said.
Wisconsin is warming faster than Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota, Schwabe said.
The increase in temperature affects different portions of Wisconsin in distinct ways, as they undergo climate change and get wetter at different rates, Schwabe said. For example, Southwestern Wisconsin has received wetter climates through all seasons, whereas northern Wisconsin gets drier during the summers, Schwabe said.
Madison will be uniquely affected by increasing temperatures because of its main lakes, Lake Monona and Lake Mendota, sustainability chair for the Associated Students of Madison Caitlyn Kenney said.
“There were the recent floods in Wisconsin, and since UW is between two lakes, that’s always something to think about,” Kenney said. “UW has seen heavier rainfall, abnormal changes of seasons and our lakes aren’t frozen over for as long as they used to be.”
UW’s twin lakes are not large enough to generate lake effect snow, or snow created from air moving over large bodies of water, Kenney said. Still, their warmth lasts longer, leaving them iced over for less time each winter, which impacts Madison traditions such as lake parties, hockey and any other ice-related activities, Kenney said.
Wisconsin has had an average temperature increase of 3 degrees Fahrenheit from 1970 to 2024, Schwabe said. This is only a few degrees warmer than the average temperature increase in neighboring states, but those few degrees are crucial, Schwabe said.
In all areas of the state, Wisconsin is getting wetter and warmer, Schwabe said.
“Many counties in the State are 20% wetter and 3 to 4 degrees warmer on average now than what they were in 1950,” Schwabe said. “Even though 20% and 3 to 4 degrees doesn’t sound like a lot, I like to relate it to your body temperature — 99 degree body temperature really isn’t that bad, but a few degrees warmer 103, that’s a pretty bad fever.”
The plaintiffs argued that the accelerating rate of humidity and temperature is due to a number of factors, according to the lawsuit.
These factors include a lack of any requirements for sustainable energy and a lack of environmental consideration when making new fossil fuel plants, according to the lawsuit.
“Wisconsin historically has had really cold winters,” Schwabe said. “If you think of it as putting two glasses of water outside, one at room temperature and one of ice water, in a couple of hours, the ice water glass may still be colder, but the temperature will have changed more than the one that was at room temperature.”
The plaintiffs argued that Wisconsin’s various impacts of increased temperatures violate their constitutional rights to life, liberty, stable climate and access to Wisconsin’s waters, according to the lawsuit.
Recent flooding, poor air quality and high temperatures are all issues facing UW that this lawsuit seeks to address.
Global warming is a pressing issue, but there are ways for student voices to be heard and make a difference, such as joining an organization or committee, Kenney said.
“One of the coolest things about this case, and what I loved about it when I read it, was that this was a group of kids, and that sends a message about the impact of every person’s voice and their power,” Kenney said. “Wisconsin law is written in Shared Governance, which includes students and staff into decision making, so getting involved with the community is very important.”
