The Dutch state does not adequately protect the inhabitants of Bonaire from climate change. This is the verdict of the District Court of The Hague in proceedings on the merits by Greenpeace against the State. The ruling is based in part on research by the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM).
The court also ruled that residents of Bonaire were treated differently from residents of the European Netherlands without good reason. This violates the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The State must incorporate binding interim targets into national regulations within 18 months to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions. The State must also have and implement a developed plan by 2030 to make Bonaire more resilient to the effects of climate change.
IVM study
Underlying the ruling is an IVM study on the effects of climate change on Bonaire, commissioned by Greenpeace. The results were published in 2022. According to the study, sea level rise threatens to lose part of the island to the sea by the end of this century and heat waves will continue to increase. Should temperatures rise further, coral reefs will also die off.
Environmental economist Pieter van Beukering led the research. "When we started this research, we hoped for policy influence. That it would lead to a legal obligation for the state to protect vulnerable islands? That proves how essential independent science is in the democratic rule of law."
Global attention
There was global coverage of the case, from the New York Times to local Caribbean media. According to Van Beukering, this shows that solid science speaks a universal language. "It connects academic insights with concrete human rights," he said.
"This research was a convergence of hard climate models and human stories. That that combination now provides judicial protection for Bonaire confirms that science does not belong in an ivory tower, but at the heart of social change."