The Supreme Court of Justice (STJ) decides this Thursday the action brought by the environmental associations Quercus, Último Recurso and Sciaena against the Portuguese State for failure to comply with the Basic Climate Law.
In a statement sent to Lusa, the association Último Recurso highlights that this is the First climate litigation case in Portugal.
The Last Resort association was created in 2022 and its mission is to use legal means to hold accountable those who are considered the main contributors to the climate crisis in Portugal.
“The decision will mark a milestone in the history of climate litigation in Portugal, at a time when there are more and more cases of climate action at international level that have found support in the courts,” the association said, considering that today “climate litigation takes a new historic step in Portugal.”
The STJ will decide on the continuation of the lawsuit filed in November 2023 by Associação Último Recurso, Quercus and Sciaena against the Portuguese State for failure to comply with the Basic Climate Law, the deadlines for which “continue to be delayed”.
The legal action –says Último Recurso– seeks “to find in justice the answer to the climate crisis that the Portuguese State has not provided.”
The Climate Base Law was approved in 2021 with a broad consensus from the left and right, but, in the opinion of the authors of the legal action, the Portuguese State did not implement measuresnamely, the development of carbon budgets, the updating of a climate action portal and the approval of sectoral mitigation plans and sectoral adaptation plans.
“These steps are essential to ensure a reduction of at least 55% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 2005 levels,” Último Recurso points out.
The initial request was rejected by the Lisbon Civil Court in May 2024, but Último Recurso, Quercus and Sciaena appealed to the STJ, which will decide on the continuation of the process.
The three climate advocacy groups express confidence in a positive outcome from the STJ judges, with the expectation that Portuguese justice will follow the trend of international jurisprudence which, in recent years, has judged and supported several actions in defense of the climate.
According to the three associations, providing an urgent response to the climate crisis and complying with the Climate Base Law is “fundamental to guarantee a healthy planet for all, especially for the Portuguese, who are increasingly feeling the effects of climate change”, since “Drought and water shortages are affecting agricultural crops from the north to the south of the country, rural fires almost doubled in July and Portugal suffered several heat waves in the summer”.
Source: Observadora
