australia

In Sharma et al. v. Minister for the Environment, a case inspired by Juliana filed in consultation with Our Children’s Trust, eight Australian youth and Sister Brigid Arthur challenged the proposed expansion of a coal mine as violating a duty of care toward Australian children under Australian statutory and common law. The court found that the youth had standing, noting in particular that “[t]he vulnerability of the Children here in question has a nexus with the Minister because the source of their exposure to risk includes the impugned conduct of the Minister.” The court further recognized that children are at increased, foreseeable risk of severe health issues resulting from climate change impacts and declared that the Minister “has a duty to take reasonable care . . . to avoid causing personal injury or death to persons who were under 18 years of age and ordinarily resident in Australia at the time of the commencement of this proceeding arising from emissions of carbon dioxide into the Earth’s atmosphere.” According to the court, this duty is based on the fact that “[o]f the people living in Australia who are currently alive, it is the Children who are most likely to remain alive long enough to fully experience the wholesale destruction by fire of much of Australia’s forests in the latter part of this century.” The court ultimately declined to issue an injunction to stop the project because the Minister had not yet made the final decision approving the project, but the court’s order declaring the duty will need to be followed when the Minister decides whether to approve the coal mine expansion. While this case is different than Juliana in that it challenges the expansion of a single coal mine and does not allege a constitutional violation, it illustrates that courts have the duty and authority to hear and decide claims challenging governmental conduct that causes climate change. The decision also illustrates the importance and utility of declarations of law because they “reflect[] the final outcome of the case with certainty and precision.”