Netherlands loses landmark global warming case, ordered to cut emissions
Ruling could set a very important precedent in Europe and around the world.
In a landmark case that may set a very important precedent for other countries around the world, especially within Europe, the Dutch government has been ordered by the courts to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent.
The ruling came from a class-action lawsuit that was brought before the Dutch courts by Urgenda in 2012. The case, rather magnificently, was based on human rights laws. Specifically, Urgenda asked the courts to "declare that global warming of more than 2 degrees Celsius will lead to a violation of fundamental human rights worldwide," and that the Dutch government is "acting unlawfully by not contributing its proportional share to preventing a global warming of more than 2 degrees Celsius."
Today, a Dutch court at The Hague ruled in favour of Urgenda, ruling that the Netherlands' plans to cut emissions by only 14-17 percent from 1990 levels by 2020 were illegal. Moreover, the wording used by the judges in the ruling is incredibly strong and clear-cut: “The state should not hide behind the argument that the solution to the global climate problem does not depend solely on Dutch efforts ... Any reduction of emissions contributes to the prevention of dangerous climate change and as a developed country the Netherlands should take the lead in this.”
The court has ordered the Dutch government to reduce greenhouse emissions by 25 percent of 1990 levels by 2020. The European Union as a whole recently set a target of 40 percent reduction by 2030. The Dutch government has already agreed to close some coal plants and step up its use of renewable energy sources (the Netherlands is quite far behind some other European nations in its use of renewables).
Zooming out, the judgement handed down by the Dutch court today was unexpected and unprecedented. Jasper Teulings, general counsel for Greenpeace, told the BBCthat it was a "landmark case" that could affect other climate cases being brought in both Belgium and the Philippines.
The scientific evidence for human-driven climate change remains unambiguous, and now there's a precedent established at court. Moving forward, it may become very hard for governments to avoid making significant cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.
This post originated on Ars Technica UK
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