Groundbreaking: the Dutch State acts unlawfully toward the residents of Bonaire

The District Court of The Hague today delivered a groundbreaking judgment holding that the State violated the ECHR and thereby acted unlawfully towards the residents of Bonaire. The court orders the State to adopt binding and appropriate measures to reduce CO₂ emissions and to implement substantial protective measures against climate-related risks.

The dispute 
According to Greenpeace, the State is doing too little both to reduce Dutch emissions and to protect the residents of Bonaire from sea level rise, coral die-off, extreme heat, and flood risks. Bonaire is a special municipality of the Netherlands which, according to Greenpeace, does not receive protection equivalent to that afforded in European Netherlands. Greenpeace argued that the Dutch State must go further than required by international agreements. Specifically, Greenpeace sought a reduction of CO₂ emissions to zero as quickly as possible, and no later than 2030. In addition, Greenpeace sought measures to protect against climate risks and, for the first time, demanded a court-imposed obligation to undertake climate adaptation. The State defended itself by referring to measures undertaken to comply with EU targets, under which net-zero emissions must be achieved by 2050. The State also pointed to adaptation investments already initiated in the Caribbean Netherlands.

The judgment: a new link in the chain of climate case law 
Following international case law, including the Urgenda judgment, the ECHR’s ruling in the case brought by the Swiss KlimaSeniorinnen, and the recent advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice regarding the State's obligations to make maximal efforts to combat the climate crisis, today’s judgment further sharpens the legal framework surrounding climate obligations. 

The court holds that the State acted contrary to the human rights as set out in the ECHR and thereby acted unlawfully towards the residents of Bonaire. Through its policies, the State has insufficiently contributed to the measures that must be taken worldwide to limit global warming by the end of the century to a maximum of 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels. In doing so, the State did too little to protect the lives of the residents of Bonaire against climate risks and unjustifiably exposed the residents of Bonaire to greater dangers than residents of the European Netherlands, precisely because climate change has earlier and greater impacts on Bonaire. 

The court orders the State, within 18 months, to enshrine clear reduction targets consistent with the Paris Agreement in national legislation, including interim targets and trajectories for the reduction of carbon emissions for the entire period through 2050, which comply with the commitments made within the UN framework. The remaining emissions budget for the Netherlands must be made transparent. In addition, the court orders the State to ensure that the UN-formulated targets for drafting and implementing a national adaptation plan, which also covers Bonaire, are met by 2030 at the latest. Although the court does not require the State to be more ambitious than the commitments made at EU and UN level, it does require the State to enact legislation and implement measures that ensure compliance with those commitments.

Significance and next steps 
This judgment may therefore develop into an important precedent for the State’s climate obligations, potentially with effects in the international sphere. CMS is closely monitoring developments and the consequences of this judgment.