A federal judge in Montana ruled a few days ago that the state violated its 16 plaintiff’s (who are children ages 5 to 22 years old) Constitutional right to a clean environment. According to the Associated Press, Montana’s Attorney General Austen Knudsen said he would appeal the ruling, called the decision absurd, and a tax payer-funded publicity stunt.

Knudsen’s spokeswoman, Emily Flower, also told the AP:

“Montanans can’t be blamed for changing the climate,” she said. “Their same legal theory has been thrown out of federal court and courts in more than a dozen states. It should have been here as well.”

No doubt the attorneys for the plaintiffs judge shopped and got the right judge who would be willing to hand down this kind of ruling. But it is decisions like this that can help environmentalists continue to whittle away at energy policy involving fossil fuels down the line. This court ruling is about power, not law.