Dutch Court Finds Government Discriminated Against Bonaire Islanders Over Climate Adaptation
A court in The Hague has delivered a landmark ruling that the Dutch government discriminated against residents of the Caribbean island of Bonaire by failing to provide adequate climate adaptation measures and by not doing its fair share to cut national greenhouse gas emissions.
Judgment Orders Concrete Action on Climate Protection
The judgment, announced on Wednesday, chastises the Netherlands for treating people on Bonaire differently to inhabitants of the European part of the country. The court found the government was breaching articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protect the right to respect for private and family life and prohibit discrimination.
To address this, the court has ordered the state to develop a proper adaptation plan for Bonaire and put in place tougher greenhouse gas targets. The government was given six months to set a national carbon budget that expresses a fair share of the remaining global carbon budget in line with a threshold of 1.5°C global heating above pre-industrial levels.
Vulnerable Territory Faces Multiple Climate Threats
Bonaire, a Dutch special municipality since 2010, is particularly vulnerable to sea-level rise, extreme heat and other climate-related impacts. The court noted that local authorities do not have enough people, resources or specialist knowledge to tackle these challenges fully.
"They really listened to us," said Jackie Bernabela, one of the original claimants who spoke at the court's October hearing about how climate change was already affecting her life. "Not only us but all the other Caribbean islands in the world – if we join as one unity we can make things happen."
Legal Precedents and Government Response
The lawsuit was initially brought by a group of people from Bonaire with Greenpeace Nederland in early 2024. Although the court rejected the complaints by individuals, it did admit Greenpeace's claim as an organisation.
This ruling follows a previous landmark climate case in the same Hague court just over a decade ago, which ordered the Dutch government to cut its emissions by at least 25% within five years – a judgment that was upheld by the country's top judges in 2019 and inspired climate litigation worldwide.
In a statement, Sophie Hermans, the Dutch minister for climate policy and green growth, said the court had delivered a "ruling of significance for the residents of Bonaire and the European Netherlands." She said she and colleagues from relevant ministries would now carefully review the judgment, which can be appealed against.
Broader Implications for Climate Justice
"This is an incredible victory for the people in Bonaire," said Eefje de Kroon, a climate justice expert at Greenpeace Nederland. "Not only has the court established that people from Bonaire are being discriminated against because of the climate crisis but also the Dutch government needs to do much more to protect them."
The court noted that under international climate agreements, countries are expected to contribute according to their capacity to pay and taking into account their historical emissions. The ruling represents a significant development in climate litigation, particularly for vulnerable island territories facing existential threats from climate change.
