The California, US, state government has initiated legal action against oil and gas company ExxonMobil over its alleged role in the global plastic pollution crisis through misleading campaigns about the effectiveness of recycling.
The formal lawsuit follows a nearly two-year investigation by the state.
Filed in San Francisco County Superior Court, the lawsuit is based on an investigation into the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries' contributions to global plastics pollution.
It alleges that Exxon's 'advanced recycling' programme was falsely marketed as a viable solution to plastic waste, despite the company's apparent knowledge that it could only process a minimal fraction of the plastic waste it produces.
The suit, spanning 147 pages, claims that the majority of the plastic waste handled by Exxon has been converted into fuel rather than recycled.
These actions violate state laws concerning nuisance, natural resources, water pollution, false advertising, and unfair competition.
Speaking during Climate Week in New York City, California Attorney General Rob Bonta accused Exxon of deceiving the public about the limitations of recycling.
"Today's lawsuit shows the fullest picture to date of ExxonMobil's decades-long deception, and we are asking the court to hold ExxonMobil fully accountable for its role in actively creating and exacerbating the plastics pollution crisis through its campaign of deception," Bonta stated.
This lawsuit against Exxon is claimed to be the first instance of US officials attempting to hold a fossil fuel company accountable for misleading the public about plastic recycling.
The financial implications of the lawsuit could be substantial, with Bonta suggesting that the compensation could amount to "multiple billions of dollars".
Exxon countered by criticising California's recycling programme.
"For decades, California officials have known their recycling system isn't effective. They failed to act, and now they seek to blame others. Instead of suing us, they could have worked with us to fix the problem and keep plastic out of landfills," the British Broadcasting Corporation quoted Exxon as saying.
An Exxon spokesperson highlighted the company's efforts in recycling, stating that Exxon had processed more than 60 million pounds of plastic waste into usable raw materials, thus preventing it from ending up in landfills.
Alongside the state's lawsuit, environmental groups such as the Sierra Club have filed a related lawsuit in the same court, levelling similar accusations against Exxon.
Yesterday (23 September), California governor Gavin Newsom signed a law to phase out plastic shopping bags at grocery store checkouts in the state from 2026.
