Scottish judge Andrew Ericht has ruled Wednesday that the UK government acted "unlawfully" in approving the Rosebank oilfield and Jackdaw gas project, marking a significant victory for climate campaigners.
The court found that the government failed to properly assess the climate damage caused by burning the extracted oil and gas, rather than just the environmental impact of extraction. "The public interest in authorities acting lawfully and the private interest of members of the public in climate change outweigh the private interest of the developers," his decision shows.
Rosebank, the UK's largest untapped oilfield, is owned by Equinor ASA, while Jackdaw is a project owned by a subsidiary of Shell. The proposed Rosebank development received approval in 2023. Equinor and Shell welcomed the decision, according to The Guardian, stating that preparatory work can continue despite the drilling ban.
