Victims of 2021 typhoon seek compensation from Shell

A ‘help’ sign is painted on the roof beside damaged homes caused by Typhoon Rai in Siargao island, Surigao del Norte, Dec. 2021

Philippine victims of a 2021 typhoon are seeking compensation from energy giant Shell for deaths and damage that they say were intensified by climate change partly resulting from the oil and gas company’s carbon emissions.

Shell says it is not legally liable for the disaster wreaked by 2021 Super Typhoon Odette, known as Typhoon Rai internationally. It killed more than 400 people and was the second most costly storm in Philippine history.

The nearly 70 Filipinos who lost family members, suffered injuries or damage sent a “Letter Before Action” this week to Shell seeking an unspecified amount of compensation. If the company does not provide a satisfactory response, they say they plan to file a lawsuit in Britain in mid-December.

The group hopes to set an example ahead of the United Nations COP30 climate conference in Brazil next month.

“It is really important for me to carry our story outside the island, outside the Philippines, and tell the whole world that we are here, we exist,” Trixy Elle, one of the people participating in the case, told The Associated Press. “We have to fight, we have to stand, we need to speak up for our rights.”

Elle said she plans to attend the climate conference next month to share her experiences.

Groups supporting the effort — Greenpeace Philippines, the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice and the green energy transition group Uplift — said they focused on Shell because of its “high historic emissions and early knowledge of the causes and effects of climate change.”

The Carbon Majors Database, run by the global, nonprofit think tank InfluenceMap, ranks Shell as one of the largest corporate emitters of greenhouse gases, contributing 2.1% of global emissions since the beginning of the industrial revolution.

“We agree that action is needed now on climate change,” a Shell spokesperson told The Associated Press after the Letter Before Action was delivered to the company’s headquarters in London. “As we supply vital energy the world needs today, we are transforming our business to supply lower-carbon fuels for the future. The suggestion that Shell had unique knowledge about climate change is simply not true.”

Last year, Shell succeeded in getting a landmark climate ruling overturned in the Netherlands, where a court had ordered the company to drastically cut its carbon emissions.

Southeast Asia is extremely vulnerable to climate change. The Philippines is often near the top of the Global Climate Risk Index. This year brought several deadly storms, such as Bualoi, Ragasa, Co-may and Matmo.

The case against Shell cites research by Ben Clarke, an associate at the Imperial College of London’s Centre for Environmental Policy, who found that the heavy rains and high winds made typhoon Odette more dangerous.

The Typhoon Odette case shows vulnerable communities can use legal means to seek damages over climate change, said Jameela Joy Reyes, of the London School of Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.

Globally, at least 226 lawsuits over climate issues were filed last year, according to the Grantham Institute. It is tracking nearly 3,000 cases across 60 countries. MDT/AP