A recent article in High Country News highlights the growing Rights of Nature movement in the Western United States, focusing on the landmark passage of Everett Initiative 24-03—the law that grants the Snohomish River Watershed legal rights.

This article provides essential context for our work and the ongoing lawsuit:

Key Points from the Article

• A Western First: Everett, Washington, made history last fall by becoming the first city in the Western U.S. to pass a ballot measure recognizing the rights of a river’s watershed. The municipal law protects the Snohomish River’s “rights to exist, regenerate and flourish.”

• Shifting Legal Status: The core purpose of Rights of Nature laws is to change the legal relationship between people and the environment. Under the current legal system, a plaintiff must prove personal injury (“standing”) to sue over harm to a river. Our new law eliminates this requirement by giving the nonhuman entity—the Snohomish River Watershed—its own legal standing.

• A Tool for the Community: The law is explicitly designed to be a tool for Everett residents to seek to prevent or repair harm to the watershed. Any damages recovered from successful lawsuits will go toward the city’s watershed restoration efforts, fostering a “community stewardship model.”

• Facing the Opposition: The article notes that while the movement is growing, similar “Rights of Nature” laws in the U.S. (like those in Florida and Ohio) have previously failed legal challenges. As we know, a group of local developers and business owners have filed a lawsuit against the Everett law, meaning our initiative could meet a similar fate, underscoring the critical nature of our current defense.

• Learning from Past Efforts: Organizers of the Everett initiative, recognizing the failures of past efforts like the law protecting Lake Erie in Toledo, deliberately restricted the law’s reach to city limits to avoid jurisdictional conflicts, showing a careful legal strategy in its creation.

The article confirms that the Everett initiative is a bold, pioneering step in the Western environmental movement, one that is crucial to defend against the current legal challenge.

Read the article ‘Rights of nature’ laws take root in the West, by Anna V. Smith, High Country News, March 1, 2025.

Image: Salmon fishermen at sunrise on the Snohomish River. (Doug Wilson/Alamy)