SAN FRANCISCO - California filed suit against the world's largest carmakers on Wednesday, charging that greenhouse gases from their vehicles have cost the state millions of dollars.

State Attorney General Bill Lockyer said the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Northern California was the first of its kind to seek to hold manufacturers liable for the damages caused by their vehicles' emissions.

Lockyer, a Democrat, said the complaint states that under federal and state common law the automakers have created a “public nuisance” by producing “millions of vehicles that collectively emit massive quantities of carbon dioxide.”

Carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases have been linked to global warming.

Lockyer's office said that “under the law, a ‘public nuisance’ is an unreasonable interference with a public right, or an action that interferes with or causes harm to life, health or property.”

“Global warming is causing significant harm to California’s environment, economy, agriculture and public health. The impacts are already costing millions of dollars and the price tag is increasing,” Lockyer said in a statement. “Vehicle emissions are the single most rapidly growing source of the carbon emissions contributing to global warming, yet the federal government and automakers have refused to act. It is time to hold these companies responsible for their contribution to this crisis.”

The lawsuit names Ford, General Motors, Toyota and the North American units of DaimlerChrysler, Honda and Nissan.

Carmakers earlier sued to block a 2005 California law that would require them to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020.

California and 11 other states are also involved in a lawsuit challenging the Bush administration's refusal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The Supreme Court is expected to hear that case during its upcoming term.

Lockyer, a Democrat said the complaint states that under federal and state common law the automakers have created a “public nuisance” by producing “millions of vehicles that collectively emit massive quantities of carbon dioxide.”