"Citing melting glaciers, Peruvian farmer tests global climate law", 15 March 2025

...The glaciers are at the center of a landmark global case that will test the legal culpability of corporations over their greenhouse gas emissions and the role these play in climate change that is leading to more extreme weather around the world. Saul Luciano Lliuya, a Huaraz farmer and mountain guide, is suing German energy firm RWE, demanding that it help pay for defenses and flood mitigation for the city, tied to the company’s share of global manmade greenhouse gas emissions that he alleges have led to faster-melting glaciers.

The case will start on Monday at the Higher Regional Court of Hamm in Germany, with lawyers for Lliuya alleging RWE is responsible for 0.5% of global emissions and should therefore pay 0.5%, or some 17,000 euros ($18,500), of a local $3.5 million flood defense project.

“We didn’t start out with a lot of hope, but now it’s caused a lot of attention,” Lliuya told Reuters near his home in a hilly region outside Huaraz where he grows corn. Lliuya, who is backed by Germanwatch, an activist group that advocates for the environment and other issues, said he wants to set a precedent for polluting companies to pay for projects that mitigate the impact of climate change.“The company has polluted and it should take responsibility for its emissions,” he said.

RWE says the complaint is unfounded and that a single emitter cannot be held responsible for global warming...