Natural disaster survivors in the Philippines and Pakistan have launched lawsuits against oil giant Shell, energy company RWE, and cement manufacturer Heidelberg Materials.
According to Inside Climate News, the companies are accused of contributing to carbon pollution that likely fueled the extreme weather.
The groups filed the lawsuits in 2021 and 2022, respectively, after Typhoon Odette killed over 400 people in the Philippines and flooding in Pakistan led to 1,700 fatalities.
The storms also destroyed homes, crops, infrastructure, and livelihoods. It's estimated that the disasters caused $30 billion in damages altogether.
These are just two of many climate-related disasters that have occurred in recent years due to rising global temperatures, and often it's the countries in the Global South that are paying the price.
The United Kingdom-based think tank InfluenceMap tracks pollution from the 180 largest oil, gas, coal, and cement companies, and Shell ranks among the top 10.
TCD Picks » Upway Spotlight
💡Upway makes it easy to find discounts of up to 60% on premium e-bike brands
Lawyers and environmental groups say these gas giants have not only had an outsized impact on the environment, but they also knew the damage that burning dirty fuels would cause decades ago.
Another study published by the European Geosciences Union examined the role the changing climate played in the formation of Typhoon Odette, and the results showed it "more than doubled the likelihood" of the extreme weather event occurring.
Nearly 70 Filipinos who lost family members, suffered injuries, or lost homes during the storm are holding Shell accountable and demanding compensation for their losses.
Meanwhile, Pakistani farmers are seeking financial reparations from both RWE and Heidelberg Materials for the massive flooding that affected one-third of the country and led to crop failures for two years in a row.
TCD Picks » Stasher Spotlight
💡Stasher's reusable food storage options make it easy and affordable to live life with less plastic
|
Should companies be required to help recycle their own products?
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
Definitely 👍 According to Inside Climate News, the floods prompted a record 33 million people to evacuate.
"Floodwaters swallowed entire villages," Dr. Shaikh Tanveer Ahmed, HANDS Welfare Foundation chairman, a Pakistani nonprofit, said in a press briefing, per ICN.
While the lawsuit regarding Typhoon Odette did not set a definitive amount in damages, Pakistani farmers are seeking at least €1 million (roughly $1.15 million). The lawsuit would be filed in Germany, as that's where the companies facing legal action are based.
These lawsuits, called tort lawsuits, are known as the "Holy Grail" of climate litigation, as Inside Climate News explained.
Sophie Marjanac, a climate lawyer, added that "These are the ones that can really have the power to make a difference."
In the United States, these types of cases are on the rise, along with in Europe and other locations.
Lawyers representing the Filipino survivors have sent a letter describing the claimed legal violations to Shell's headquarters. If the dispute can't be settled out of court, the lawsuit will be filed in the U.K. in December.
Regarding the case against the German companies, a letter was sent to Heidelberg Materials by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights. If the company does not respond within four weeks, a lawsuit will be filed in Germany in December.
As the impacts of a shifting climate are increasingly being felt around the globe, costing lives, properties, and livelihoods, holding dirty fuel companies and big industrial polluters accountable will help everyone, the affected parties included.
"How is it fair or just that we pay the price for a climate crisis that we did not cause, while big corporations in the Global North are still able to make huge profits?" Abdul Hafeez Khoso, a farmer whose fields were ruined in the 2022 floods, said in a press statement, per Inside Climate News. "Those who are responsible for the damage must pay."
Tessa Khan, an international climate lawyer and executive director of the U.K.-based organization Uplift, added: "As communities are left to deal with the devastation these extreme weather events cause, it is inevitable that they will be looking to hold the groups who are responsible in some way for that damage to account."
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices — and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.
Cool Picks
