Is action on climate change a human right? A European court will rule for the first time
Europe’s highest human rights court will rule on a group of landmark climate change cases aimed at forcing countries to meet international obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
STRASBOURG, France (AP) — Europe’s highest human rights court will rule Tuesday on a group of landmark climate change cases aimed at forcing countries to meet international obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The European Court of Human Rights will hand down decisions in a trio of cases brought by a French mayor, six Portuguese youngsters and more than 2,000 members of Senior Women for Climate Protection, who say their governments are not doing enough to combat climate change.
Lawyers for all three are hoping the Strasbourg court will find that national governments have a legal duty to make sure global warming is held to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, in line with the goals of the Paris climate agreement.
Although activists have had successes with lawsuits in domestic proceedings, this will be the first time an international court has ruled on climate change.
