AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – A Dutch court ruled on Wednesday that KLM misled its customers with an advertising campaign aimed at improving the airline’s environmental image, in a case known as “greenwashing”.
The decision represents a significant victory for environmental activists who denounced KLM’s “Fly Responsibly” campaign as misleading, with aviation being a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.
The court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, but did not impose any sanctions on the Dutch branch of Air France-KLM.
“A number of advertisements made by KLM in the past were misleading and therefore illegal,” the judge said, in a written summary of the decision.
However, the airline will not be forced to rectify the situation and will be able to continue advertising to its customers, despite calls for a blanket ban.
In the future, the company is expected to be “honest and concrete” about its environmental statements, the court stressed.
Fossil Free Group member Hiske Arts, which filed the lawsuit, said it was pleased with the decision.
“The court could not have been clearer: Companies are not allowed to claim they are fighting dangerous climate change, when in reality they are fueling the crisis.”
The CEO of Air France-KLM, Ben Smith, described the trial as a “displeasure”.
“We’re not greenwashing,” he told a news conference, saying the company was taking steps to reduce its emissions, planning to buy more efficient planes and mix more kerosene biofuel.
Fossil Free believes that KLM’s future plans are marginal, and that their importance is less than the current danger, especially as the company plans to increase the number of its flights.
(Reporting Toby Sterling in Amsterdam, Joanna Plucińska and Julia Payne in Brussels; French version Stéphanie Hamel, editing by Kate Entringer)
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