【Press Release 】～Youth Climate Case Japan for Tomorrow / Future ～ Sixteen Youth across Japan Filed Case Against Thermal Power Generators claiming for reduction of CO2 Emissions

August 6, 2024
Attorneys for Youth Climate Case

Today, 16 young people from Japan nationwide, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, filed a case in the Nagoya District Court against 10 thermal power companies, including JERA Corporation, claiming for injunction against CO2 emissions based on the scientific standards. To ensure the plaintiffs and young people across Japan live tomorrow and future, the defendants, the major Japanese electric power companies must decarbonize at least in the 2030s to limit the rise in average global temperatures to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This case at least demands the defendants’ implementation of the emission reductions required by science.

As we enter the era of “global boiling,” temperature rises are approaching 1.5°C worldwide, including Japan. We have already experienced extreme heat of over 40°C. On July 25, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that temperature will continue to rise. He also noted that extreme heat is the new abnormal, which is increasingly straining economies, increasing inequality, and costing people their lives. Consequently, he pointed out the anthropogenic climate change caused by the use of fossil fuels as the cause, to call for accelerated emission reductions. The situation requires immediate and decisive action.

The CO2 emissions of Japan’s power generation sector (394 million tons), including the defendants, equates to 16th place in the global ranking of emissions by country. It is also Japan’s largest emitting sector, accounting for about 40% of Japan’s energy-derived CO2 emissions. The International Energy Agency (IEA) and the G7 agreement also demand carbon neutrality of the power sector by 2035. The defendants of 10 companies, Japan’s largest thermal power producer including JERA, are responsible for 337 million tons of CO2 emissions (in FY 2019), equivalent to 33% of Japan’s energy-derived CO2 emissions(1.03billion). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) calls for a 48% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2030 and a 65% reduction by 2035 compared to 2019 levels to achieve the 1.5°C target (50% confidence). Avoiding dangerous climate change is the world’s greatest common concern, to constitute emission reductions to the levels required by the IPCC as public order for the international community. Large emitting companies in Japan, a developed country, are also obligated to reduce their emissions to this level. The same should be applied to the defendants, the power generators, as a minimum obligation.

However, the 2030 reduction targets proposed by the defendants are not only below the requisite level but are also extremely inadequate in that they continue to use coal-fired power generation, etc., relying on technically unproven technologies such as hydrogen/ ammonia co-firing, and CCS, all of which have little effect on emission reduction. Moreover, the defendants have not even set the 2035 target at all except JERA, which has set only a 48% reduction target from 2019 levels. In light of these circumstances, it is nearly impossible to assert that they are developing a plan that aligns with the 1.5°C objective.

The plaintiffs filed this case, in order to be protected from the even more severe impact of climate change, claiming the court’s order for the defendants to fulfill their legal obligation to reduce their emissions. The plaintiffs also expect the defendants to shift to a renewable energy company.

WEBSITE: http://youth4cj.jp