GSI Seminar Series - Sarah Finch 'Fighting fossil fuels in the courts'

Join the GSI for the next talk in our seminar series, this time with climate campaigner Sarah Finch who won a landmark legal victory last year which has had major implications for fossil fuel developments in the UK and beyond.

On behalf of the Weald Action Group, Sarah fought a five-year legal battle over plans to drill for oil in Surrey. Her eventual victory in the Supreme Court established that fossil fuel projects cannot be approved without a comprehensive assessment of their full climate impact – a big step forward in environmental decision-making.

Based on this ruling, a number of fossil fuel developments have been found unlawful, including the giant Rosebank oil field in the North Sea and what would have been the UK’s first new coal mine in decades. The government has been forced to rethink its approach to the environmental assessment of new oil and gas fields and all applications are on hold while the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero develops new guidance on this vital area. Beyond oil and gas, the judgment is influencing decisions on intensive animal farming, aviation and more.

Thanks to Sarah’s tenacious campaigning, fossil fuel companies can no longer get away with hiding the enormous harm they are doing to the climate by opening new projects. Sarah will talk about the background to the case, the ramifications since she won, and what needs to be done to secure a definitive end to new fossil fuel consents in the UK.

Please email infoGSI@exeter.ac.uk to confirm your place in Streatham Court LT D with refreshments provided.

You can also join online using the following Zoom link: https://Universityofexeter.zoom.us/j/99861285446?pwd=4Ndz7Uws8GojrsMjgptu71eebtUXit.1