Chief Justice Mike McGrath rejected the state's argument that Montana's greenhouse gas emissions are "minuscule on a global scale," writing that constitutional delegates would not "grant the State a free pass to pollute." What legal principle does this establish?

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Chief Justice Mike McGrath rejected the state's argument that Montana's greenhouse gas emissions are "minuscule on a global scale," writing that constitutional delegates would not "grant the State a free pass to pollute." What legal principle does this establish?

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The Montana Supreme Court's 6-1 decision established that constitutional environmental rights can't be negated by claiming small individual contributions to global problems—like saying you can't be prosecuted for murder because other people kill too. McGrath's opinion rejected the "everyone else is doing it" defense, ruling that Montana's constitutional delegates intended "strongest, all-encompassing environmental protections" regardless of other states' actions. This precedent prevents governments from avoiding constitutional obligations by claiming their individual contribution to collective harm is negligible.

Chief Justice Mike McGrath rejected the state's argument that Montana's greenhouse gas emissions are "minuscule on a global scale," writing that constitutional delegates would not "grant the State a free pass to pollute." What legal principle does this establish?

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