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By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital

Hello!

It’s been a busy week for climate litigation in Europe. The European Commission is taking Greece to court over its flood risk management plans and a Belgian farmer is seeking compensation for climate change-fuelled damage from French oil and gas company TotalEnergies.

The European Commission said it was taking Greece to the EU’s top court for failing to revise its flood risk management plans, a key tool for EU countries to prepare themselves against floods.

The action comes five months after the worst rains in Greece flooded its fertile Thessaly plain, devastating crops and livestock and raising questions about the Mediterranean country’s ability to deal with an increasingly erratic climate.

Also on my radar today:

• FCA signals watchdog open to ending to free banking in Britain
• Black bankers lose race discrimination claim against Barclays
• EU attempts to smooth South American complaints over deforestation policy

A flooded former school in the village of Vlohos, months after devastating storm hit the area. Greece faces an uphill battle with the impacts of climate change. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki

Under EU rules, countries need to update once in six years their flood management plans, which aim to help them mitigate the risks of floods on human lives, the environment and economic activities.

Greece was formally notified by the Commission last year that it should finalize its management plans but the country has so far failed to review, adopt or report its flood risk management plans, the Commission said in a statement.

The Greek Environment Ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The Commission last month sued Bulgaria, Cyprus, Spain, Ireland, Malta, Portugal and Slovakia for failing to comply with their respective climate reporting obligations. 

Earlier this week, the Commission said that the EU needed to step up preparations for climate change risks as a hotter planet threatens everything from farming to financial stability.

The Commission was responding to a stark report published by the European Environment Agency (EEA), which urged EU countries to prepare for “catastrophic” risks from worsening climate change.

Climate-caused damages could soar without stronger action to prepare. As sea levels rise, damage from coastal floods could exceed 1 trillion euros ($1.09 trillion) per year in Europe by 2100, the EEA said. In comparison, the EU’s total gross domestic product in 2022 was 15.8 trillion euros.

Preparations for worse climate change will be factored into all relevant EU spending, the Commission said.

Despite acknowledging the mounting toll climate change is unleashing on Europe’s farmers – floods in Greece destroyed 15% of the country’s agricultural yield last year – the Commission did not signal any upcoming policy changes that would drive the sector to adapt.

Speaking of climate change effects on Europe’s farmers, a Belgian farmer is taking TotalEnergies to court, seeking compensation for climate change-fuelled damage to his farm and a legal order for the company to halt investments in new fossil fuel projects.

The case, filed at the Tournai commercial court, is the first climate change-related lawsuit in Belgium to target a multinational company.

Hugues Falys, who farms a herd of cattle in the municipality of Lessines, argues that, as one of the world’s top 20 CO2-emitting companies, TotalEnergies is partly responsible for damage extreme weather did to his operations from 2016-2022.

During that period, successive droughts reduced the yield of his meadows where he grows fodder for the animals – forcing him to buy feed and, eventually, reduce the size of his herd.

He argues TotalEnergies has failed to comply with Belgian law, which states anyone who causes damage must make reparations for it. It is a similar argument to the one used against the Belgian government in the previous climate case, in which thousands of citizens successfully sued the Belgian government to demand stronger greenhouse gas emissions cuts. 

Falys and three campaign groups joining the legal action are seeking an injunction that would force TotalEnergies to overhaul its business plan.

A spokesperson for TotalEnergies declined to comment on the case.

Sammy pauses while walking through the wooded areas and poses for a portrait in a park in Miami, Florida, U.S. REUTERS/Maria Alejandra Cardona

Judson Aiken, director of risk and ESG solutions at U.S.-based auditing platform, AuditBoard, shares his thoughts on the recent U.S. regulatory climate risk ruling:

“The U.S climate risk disclosure ruling by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) promises to bring a new era of corporate transparency.

“These rules come in response to increasing demand from investors and public filers for more consistent, comparable, and reliable climate risk reporting.

“They will require public companies to begin disclosing the material impacts of climate risks and transition activities on their operations and financial statements. In addition, while Scope 3 requirements were ultimately removed from the final ruling, Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emission disclosures will be required for some filers, with limited and reasonable assurance requirements coming in a phased approach. 

“Chairman Gensler referenced the fact that 90% of the Russell 1000 are already reporting on this type of sustainability data and these new climate risk disclosure rules intend to bring consistency to that reporting.

“The general feedback we’re hearing from our customers and risk leaders is that they are eager to have more consistent guidance to give them a north star to start working towards.

“We’ve already seen extensive collaboration across sustainability teams with their audit, risk, and compliance counterparts as they have been building the foundations for internal controls over sustainability reporting and these rules will be a step forward in terms of bringing sustainability reporting on par with financial reporting.”

Shell weakened its 2030 carbon reduction target and scrapped a 2035 objective, citing expectations for lower power sales and strong demand for gas in the energy transition even as it affirmed a plan to cut emissions to net zero by 2050.

The changes to the targets are a central pillar in CEO Wael Sawan’s strategy revamp to focus on higher-margin projects, steady oil output and growth in production of natural gas in order to boost returns.

Belgian Wendy Adriaens, the founder of De Passiehoeve, an animal rescue farm offers a hug to 10-month-old ostriches at Passiehoeve farm, in Kalmthout, Belgium. REUTERS/Yves Herman 

Today’s spotlight takes us to a Belgian animal rescue farm that offers ostrich hugs to visitors.

Ostriches are normally territorial and aggressive birds best approached with caution, but at a Belgian animal rescue farm, the hand-reared birds are so gentle they will cuddle with visitors.

At the Passiehoeve animal rescue farm in Kalmthout, visitors can sit on a blanket in an enclosure where some of the ostriches will approach, sit, and rest their long necks on human shoulders.

“This is the only place in the world where ostriches will really cuddle with people,” said Wendy Adriaens, 41, a former corporate executive who started the farm after saving a clutch of ostrich chicks from an ostrich meat farm.

Today’s Sustainable Switch was edited by Jane Merriman

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