Dutch Court Orders Oil giant Shell to Reduce CO2 Emissions by 45% by 2030 relative to 2019 levels
SKY NEWS BREAKING NEWS 26 MAY 2021
Shell ordered to reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 in landmark ruling
Oil major Royal Dutch Shell said it “fully expects” to appeal the “disappointing” decision.
Victoria Seabrook: Climate reporter @v_seabrook: Wednesday 26 May 2021 15:25, UK
Multinational oil company Royal Dutch Shell has been ordered in court to slash its carbon emissions in order to protect the environment from climate change.
The landmark ruling, thought to be the first in history of its kind, demands the firm cuts its emissions by net 45% by 2030 – compared with 2019 levels – to bring it in line with the Paris Agreement
The outcome has far-reaching implications for the global fossil fuel industry and could pave the way for further climate litigation against big oil.
The court ruled that the Anglo-Dutch energy giant had a duty of care to reduce emissions and that its current plans were not concrete enough.
Shell said in a statement it “fully expect[s] to appeal today’s disappointing court decision” and meanwhile it wants to grow demand for its low carbon energy products.
The historic verdict was handed down at the District Court of the Hague against Royal Dutch Shell, in a case brought by environmentalist and human rights groups including Friends of the Earth in the Netherlands (FOE NL)
The campaigners’ lawyers brought the case on the grounds that Shell had breached its legal duty of care and violated human rightsShell was the ninth biggest polluter in the world in 1988-2015, according to the Carbon Majors database.
The firm currently has a target to reduce the “carbon intensity” of its prodcuts by 100% before 2050.
But judge Larisa Alwin ruled that target was “not concrete, has many caveats and is based on monitoring social developments rather than the company’s own responsibility for achieving a CO2 reduction”.
Carbon intensity reflects the total amount of greenhouse gas emitted per unit of energy sold, allowing the oil major to rely on offsetting to reach the target rather than make absolute emissions cuts.
This would mean it could even increase fossil fuel production if it could offset alongside.
The campaigners believe Shell has “refused to take any responsibility” for “the destruction of our society and climate” which is why it has taken Shell to court to “answer for their actions”.
The verdict comes on the same day that shareholders voted on climate proposals at ExxonMobil and Chevron, leading some green groups to describe it as a “day of reckoning” for big oil.
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