How a Peruvian farmer’s lawsuit is challenging global energy giants over climate damage
The case has taken nearly 10 years to be heard with judges visiting Peru to view the village firsthand.
Can an energy company be held responsible for glacial melting half a world away? One Peruvian farmer believes the answer should be yes.
Saul Luciano Lliuya, a Quechua-speaking farmer and mountain guide from Peru’s Ancash region, is set to appear in court this week as his nearly decade-long legal battle against German energy giant RWE reaches a climax.
The 44-year-old contends that RWE, as one of the world’s top emitters of climate-altering emissions, should share in the cost of protecting his hometown, Huaraz, from a swollen glacial lake at risk of overflowing due to melting snow and ice.
The hearings, scheduled for 17 and 19 March at the Higher Regional Court in Hamm, Germany, will determine what evidence will be permissible in the final trial, which will rule on whether RWE – which has never operated in Peru – can be held liable for damages.
What is the case about?
Lliuya first challenged RWE after a 2013 Carbon Majors Study found the company responsible for 0.5 per cent of climate change since industrialisation began in the 1850s.
He is asking for the company to pay for about 0.5 per cent of the cost of protecting Huaraz from the imminent risk of flooding and overflow from Lake Palcacocha. That amount has been tallied at about €17,000.
“What I am asking is for the company to take responsibility for part of the construction costs, such as a dike in this case,” he told reporters in Lima on Wednesday before departing for Germany.
In 2015, Lliuya filed a suit against the company that was later dismissed by a court in Essen. In 2017, a higher court in Hamm admitted an appeal.
Following pandemic-induced delays, the initial hearings are now taking place.
What does it mean for global corporations?
The case is ground-breaking in every way.
RWE insists it has always complied with government guidelines on greenhouse gas emissions and aims to be carbon-neutral by 2040. Yet its historical contribution to a warming planet has put it in the crosshairs, raising questions about corporate accountability for climate change and cross-border legal responsibilities.
“Never before has a case of climate justice reached an evidentiary stage,” Andrea Tang, a lawyer for Germanwatch, the environmental NGO supporting Lliuya, said in Lima.
She added that the case “would set a huge precedent for the future of climate justice.”
How a Peruvian farmer captured global headlines
Before the case even reached this stage, it had already commanded global attention.
For one, Lliuya had never left Peru before he decided to take RWE to court. His efforts also brought European experts to Peru.
Following diplomatic talks, judges from Germany visited Huaraz and Lake Palcacocha – about 4,500 metres above sea level in the Andes - in 2022. Surrounded by dozens of journalists and documentary film teams, they assessed the potential risk to the village.
While Lliuya has won the legal battle to have his case tried, it is yet to be seen if that visit also won the judges over to his side of the scientific argument.
No comments:
Post a Comment