Peruvian farmer vs German energy giant: The case that could set a climate precedent

A landmark case which seeks to establish that polluters can be held liable for transboundary harm completed its hearing in a German court on March 19. The case against RWE, Germany’s largest energy provider, was filed by Saul Luciano Lliuya, a 41-year-old Peruvian farmer and mountain guide based in Huaraz.

Lliuya has witnessed glaciers retreating in his home in the high mountains. Along with his parents, his neighbours and the 50,000-strong community at risk, Lliuya is concerned about how climate change is affecting the region. “Every year I go up into the mountains, and the situation is very scary,” he said. “It’s getting worse every year, the glaciers are disappearing rapidly.”

RWE is among the top three carbon dioxide emitters in the European Union power sector. The court will deliver its final verdict on April 14.

Lliyua said he had low expectations when the case was filed in 2015 since it was initially dismissed in a court at Essen. Two years later there was a positive response in 2017 to his appeal in the higher regional court of Hamm, which ruled that the case was admissible under German law.

The ruling rests on the “neighbour law” in the German Civil Code section 1004, which deals with protection...

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