The environmental organization Friends of the Earth regrets the new verdict.
It hurts. At the same time, the case shows that the major emitters are not immune and it has stimulated the debate about their responsibility to combat the dangerous climate changes, says Donals Pols, from the Dutch part of Friends of the Earth to AP.
It was in 2020 that the company Shell was sued by Dutch environmental groups. They demanded that the company reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 45 percent by 2030, compared to 2019 levels.
The environmental groups got it right. The court in The Hague then ruled that Shell contributed to climate changes and that a 45-percent reduction was necessary to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
The verdict, the first to force a company to adapt its environmental policy to the Paris Agreement's temperature targets, was described as a milestone and a historic victory for the environmental movement.
But Shell appealed the verdict to the next instance. According to the company, it invests over SEK 100 billion in solutions for reduced emissions over a three-year period.
And now the higher instance overturns the verdict and announces that Shell is already doing enough. The company has goals for its carbon dioxide emissions that are in line with the requirements that Friends of the Earth has, the court announces in its decision.
