The emerald-green pools are located within the white glacier peaks of the Cordillera Blanca, Peru. Despite its majestic appearance, the lake could be a ticking time bomb for the Huaraz people of Peru.
The city of 120,000 residents is now at the center of a landmark legal battle between local farmers and global energy giant RWE.
Since the 1970s, Lake Palcacocha has expanded 34 times in volume due to the melting of ice water from the glacier above. Many worry that the city’s flood defences, which consist of a series of flood pipes, are insufficient.
trauma
Global warming could lead to flooding that could trigger deadly landslides, a study has warned. natural geosciences Published last year.
This threat is not unprecedented. In 1941, a large chunk of ice fell into the lake in an earthquake, causing flooding that killed as many as 1,800 people.
Saúl Luciano Lliuya, backed by the NGO German Watch, has filed a lawsuit against energy company RWE, demanding that it pay part of the cost to prevent damage from potential flooding.
According to a 2013 report, the company is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases in European history. climate change journal.
Methane
Journalist Olivia Acland interviewed Luciano Lliuya at his home in the northern suburbs of Huaraz.This is part of an investigation source materiala nonprofit investigative journalism organization.
“Saúl is a farmer and during the peak season he also acts as a mountain guide for tourists,” she told ecologist“During his lifetime, he saw the Cordillera Blanca’s glaciers recede a lot.
“He told me how frustrated he was because Peru is less developed than the rest of the world (including Europe) and has fewer resources to fight climate change, but because of the greenhouse gases emitted in richer, wealthier regions, Peru Suffering. Developed countries.
“Between 1750 and 2010, RWE was responsible for about 0.5% of global carbon dioxide and methane emissions,” she cites a 2014 report on Carbon Major at the Institute for Climate Responsibility. “[This] That’s why it is necessary for them to pay 0.5 per cent for the city’s flood protection, which equates to almost £17,000,” she added.
tipping point
The RWE has vigorously debated any responsibility for the melting of the glaciers, arguing that the claim is unfounded. An RWE spokesperson said in an interview German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle: “It is impossible to prove that the carbon emissions generated by companies like RWE are contributing to the situation on the other side of the world.”
