By Sandhya Saravanan, Member of the Bar Council Publications Committee
The 37th LAWASIA Conference 2024 took place from 13 to 15 Oct 2024 at Hilton Kuala Lumpur.
The session on the Youth Climate Court was a simulated tribunal proceeding that addressed the climate change problem. The simulated case pertained to a joint venture between Surya Energy Corporation and the Sabah State Government to install 800,000 solar panels to generate 300 megawatts of electricity over 5,000 hectares of forested land in Sabah, known as the Serendit solar farm project.
Surya Energy Corporation argued that the Serendit solar farm project was in line with the 12th Malaysia Plan to achieve a prosperous, inclusive, sustainable Malaysia. This project was also in adherence to the objectives set out in Article 10 of the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (“Paris Agreement”). To mitigate potential damages from the project, Surya Energy Corporation proposed to set up a dedicated office in Kota Kinabalu to engage with relevant stakeholders on a monthly basis and collaborate with local businesses with the aim of creating more job opportunities for locals. It pledged to set up multiple wildlife corridors to allow the transition of wildlife from the forests, as well as an off-site restoration larger than the land it had cleared.
The Sabah State Government added to the argument by highlighting that the project potentially allows Malaysia to meet its target as called for in Paris Agreement by reducing 45% of carbon emissions from 2010 levels by 2030. This project could significantly reduce the reliance on fossil fuels in Malaysia.
However, Save Forest for Future Farmers argued that the project was at the wrong place and at the wrong time, as clearing 5000 hectares of forest land could significantly disrupt the local ecosystem. They advocated that a poly-centric approach must be taken in deciding whether the benefits of the projects outweighed the sociological and environmental impact on the local community. It was also argued that free, prior informed consent of indigenous peoples of the Padas, Dusun and Murut tribes must be obtained and upheld before the project commences.
Representatives of the Indigenous groups cited the case of Adong bin Kuwau & Ors v Kerajaan Negeri Johor & Anor [1997] 1 MLJ 418 which highlighted the customary rights of aborigines over land and made a case that the principles should be applied here in Sabah. The argument of intra- and inter-generational equity was emphasised, given that the aborigines had been living on the land for generations and should continue for generations to come.
Representatives of the Borneo Youth Ecological Network adopted similar submissions and further highlighted the potential for loss of natural carbon sink, ecosystem disruption as well as potential landslides and floods, following a similar incident in Korea.
Upon deliberation, the tribunal decided that it required further reports to determine whether the overall public benefits from the solar farm’s generation of renewable energy which addressed the problem of climate change.