Shell: Netherlands court orders oil giant to cut emissions // Why a ‘crushing’ day for Big Oil represents a watershed moment in the climate battle
By 2030, Shell must cut its CO2 emissions by 45% compared to 2019 levels, the civil court ruled. The Shell group is responsible for its own CO2 emissions and those of its suppliers, the verdict said. It is the first time a company has been legally obliged to align its policies with the Paris climate accords, says Friends of the Earth (FoE). The environmental group brought the case to court in 2019, alongside six other bodies and more than 17,000 Dutch citizens.
Though the decision only applies in the Netherlands, it could have wider effects elsewhere. BBC Netherlands correspondent Anna Holligan tweeted that it was a "precedent-setting judgement". A Shell spokesperson said they "fully expect to appeal today's disappointing court decision" and added that they are stepping up efforts to cut emissions. "Urgent action is needed on climate change, which is why we have accelerated our efforts to become a net-zero emissions energy company by 2050," the spokesperson said, adding that Shell was investing "billions of dollars in low-carbon energy, including electric vehicle charging, hydrogen, renewables and biofuels".
"This is really great news and a gigantic victory for
the earth, our children and for all of us," FoE director Donald
Pols said in a statement. "The judge leaves no doubt about it:
Shell is causing dangerous climate change and must now stop it quickly."…
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57257982
Why a ‘crushing’ day for Big Oil represents a watershed moment in the climate battle
Some of the world’s largest corporate emitters have suffered a series of landmark boardroom and courtroom defeats, reflecting the waning patience of investors pushing for much faster action to tackle the climate emergency. In just a few hours on Wednesday, shareholders at U.S. oil giant ExxonMobil supported a tiny activist hedge fund in overhauling the company’s board, investors in U.S. energy firm Chevron defied management on a pivotal climate vote and a Dutch court ordered Royal Dutch Shell to take much more aggressive action to drive down its carbon emissions.
The confluence of events shows the growing pressure on international oil and gas companies to set short-, medium- and long-term targets that are consistent with the Paris Agreement — the climate accord widely recognized as critically important to avoid an irreversible climate crisis. At present, none of the world’s largest oil and gas companies has disclosed how they will achieve the target of becoming a net-zero enterprise by 2050, more than five years after the Paris Agreement was ratified by nearly 200 countries.
“An utterly crushing day for Big Oil,” Bill McKibben, author
and founder of the grassroots climate campaign 350.org, said Wednesday via
Twitter. “Thanks to all who fight — you push long enough and dominoes tumble.”….
John Sentamu - It’s time to act against the oil companies causing death and destruction
This obscure energy treaty is the
greatest threat to the planet you’ve never heard of
Erin Brockovich - Plummeting sperm
counts, shrinking penises: toxic chemicals threaten humanity
Restoring forests
could capture two-thirds of the carbon humans have added to the atmosphere
From
Siberia to Australia: the age of fire is the bleakest warning yet
The Amazon
is burning. The climate is changing. And we're doing nothing to stop it
Matt Sheehan - Silent documentary on
China's unspooling environmental disasters
