Amitha Muraleedharan
Supported by thousands of Dutch citizens, a group of environmental organizations filed a civil case against the energy giant Shell in the Hague District Court.
The case requested the court to order the multinational to restrict its carbon emissions to 45% by the year 2030.
The Lawyer Roger Cox said the panel led by three judges that,
“Royal Dutch Shell’s corporate policy is on (a) collision course with global climate targets.”
He also stated that it has been already spending billions of dollars on low-carbon technologies, ranging from wind power to electric vehicle charging. But the company cannot make any arrangements.
The European Union aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to at least 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels under the 2015 Paris climate change agreement.
Opposing the case, the company Shell said in a statement that the company is on an ambition to set a net-zero emission energy business by 2050.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte responded to the matter that the government would implement sufficient measures in the matter. But it remains to be seen that the measures will meet the result by the year’s end.
The Urgenda and Shell cases are identical because both are based in part on a duty of care described in Dutch law.
Roda Verheyen, a German lawyer, said that the result of the Shell case would make an impact worldwide. It will pose questions about how businesses balance their bottom line with their duty of care responsibilities.