A German court is re-opening a significant climate-related legal case involving Peruvian farmer Saul Luciano Lliuya, who asserts that emissions from German energy company RWE have played a role in the melting of glaciers in the Andes.
The case could establish a precedent for future climate litigation by holding companies responsible for their past emissions and obliging them to finance climate adaptation efforts for communities impacted by those emissions, as reported by Reuters.
Lliuya, with support from activist group Germanwatch, seeks €21,000 ($23,000) from RWE towards a $3.5m flood defence project.
Referencing the Carbon Majors database, Lliuya contends that RWE is accountable for 0.5% of global human-made emissions since the Industrial Revolution and should bear a proportional share of the expenses associated with global warming to which they have contributed.
Center for International Environmental Law senior attorney Sebastien Duyck stated: “Legal experts are watching closely to understand the extent to which this is going … to set a strong precedent.”
This case highlights ongoing debates about the financial responsibilities of industrialised countries in mitigating global warming effects, as discussed at UN climate summits, including 2024’s COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Harjeet Singh, founding director of the Satat Sampada Climate Foundation, emphasised the potential of such cases to generate alternative funding in the future, stating: “We can double down on those companies who are responsible for the crisis and how we can raise the proceeds to help people recover from current impacts.”
RWE, which is gradually shutting down its coal-fired power plants, maintains that it is unfair to hold an individual carbon dioxide emitter solely responsible for the issue of global warming.
“If such a claim were to exist under German law, it would also be possible to hold every motorist liable,” the company declared.
The case, initiated in 2015 in Essen, RWE’s home city, was initially dismissed but allowed to proceed by the Higher Regional Court of Hamm in 2017.
The court must first establish whether the melting glaciers are causing water levels in Lake Palcacocha, situated more than 4,500 metres above sea level, to rise and whether this presents a direct threat to Lliuya’s home in Huaraz over the 30 years up to 2054.
