Environmental rights group files first climate action suit
A leading environmental rights group in Sri Lanka has filed the first public interest fundamental rights lawsuit in the Supreme Court against the failure of the then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to outline a policy framework to mitigate and to adapt to the impacts of climate change under the Paris agreement.
The Centre for Environmental Justice (Guarantee) Limited and its directors Hemantha Withanage and P.K. Dilena, are seeking several court orders.
They complain that the respondents including the then president, the environment minister, ministry secretary, Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority, Central Environmental Authority, the inspector general of police, and several others have failed in their duty take necessary actions to adapt and mitigate the impacts of climate change, which is imminent and is a continuous violation of the rights of the petitioners as well as the public.
They are seeking an order directing the respondents to take immediate steps to implement the international conventions, particularly the 2016 Paris Convention, to formulate mechanisms, laws and policies on climate change mitigation.
They are also seeking orders directing respondents to take immediate steps to introduce a strategic plan to popularise the use of electric vehicles, to discourage the use of fossil fuel vehicles, to enhance and expand the use of renewable energy and to implement renewable energy plans by using rooftops etc., rather than promoting thermal power plants.
They say the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from burning of fossil fuel from transport, industries, and electricity generation contribute to the rise of the global mean temperature. Rising temperature would cause changes in the global climate which could have irreversible impacts on ecosystems.
They say that with the rise in sea levels, the country is impacted in many ways such as coastal erosion; natural habitat destruction; intrusion of salinity and shoreline retreat, and will have catastrophic effects on tourism, fisheries, human settlements, and natural habitats.
Unpredictability and variability in rainfall are likely to hamper agriculture especially, rice cultivation, leading to food insecurity at both national and household levels in the country, they say.
UNICEF ranked Sri Lanka at 61 out of 163 countries in terms of the children’s climate risk index, ranking countries based on children’s exposure to climate and environmental shocks, the petitioners say, adding that children are exposed to climate and environment hazards, shocks and stresses, leaving without food, healthcare and education.
Moreover, the poorest and the marginalised groups would bear the brunt of the impacts of climate change. More and more poor people would suffer from, hunger, diseases, and unemployment.
Sweden ranked the highest in taking steps to mitigate climate change, they say, adding that the country has a climate policy framework with ambitious climate goals, a climate Act and a climate policy council, which set out to implement the Paris agreement.
Taking the Swedish example, the petitioners urge mitigation and adaptation efforts to tackle climate change impacts to be modelled after the strategies followed by the Scandinavian countries and to take prompt actions to minimise impacts of climate change in the country.
The Paris agreement with the objective of limiting global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels, is a legally binding international treaty to which Sri Lanka became a signatory, and is legally bound and committed to achieve this goal, the petitioners say.
The Supreme Court is yet to decide whether or not to hear the case and granted time till the next date for the Attorney General to file objections.
Dr. Ravindranath Dabare, appearing for the petitioners, objected to the request of the state counsel for the Attorney General who moved for time to file objections. Dr. Dabare told court that such a request had been made earlier as well.