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ARTICLE · 09 NOVEMBER 2018

The Rise Of Citizen Lawsuits For Environmental Change

Siskinds LLP
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Recently, on October 9, 2018, The Hague Court of Appeal made an unprecedented ruling in finding that the preservation of a stable climate system is a fundamental human right and ordered the Dutch government to meet its commitment of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.

CanadaEnvironment
Paula Lombardi
Paula Lombardi
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Urgenda Foundation v Kingdom of the Netherlands

Recently, on October 9, 2018, The Hague Court of Appeal made an unprecedented ruling in finding that the preservation of a stable climate system is a fundamental human right and ordered the Dutch government to meet its commitment of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.

The decision of the Hague Court of Appeal is an important victory for climate change. The decision confirmed that the Dutch government had to meet its commitment on cutting greenhouse gas emissions and ordered it to ensure reductions of a minimum of 25 percent from 1990 levels by 2020 as opposed to the 17 percent goal being implemented. The Court found that anything less represented a breach of promises made in the Paris Agreement of 2015, would not be a reasonable and fair contribution for meeting internationally agreed upon emissions targets, and violated the human rights of the 886 citizens who initiated the case.

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