Valdivia Herrera v. Ministry of the Environment

The plaintiff presented an amparo action against the government (Ministry of Environment) for failing to perform its duty to mitigate an Andean glacier retreat, which faces collapse due to climate change, and remains an environmental threat to the majority of the Peruvian population. Here, the plaintiff presented a proposal to protect the snow-capped mountains and mitigate the processes of loss of mountains due to glacial water sources, creating more significant social equity and increasing territorial environmental value. The plaintiff argued that while the government was aware of the problem and had seen the proposal, they have failed to act on it or take any significant measures to help mitigate the problem. As such, the government ignored the climate emergency and its duty to mitigate it. The plaintiff relied on the constitutional right to a healthy environment. This lawsuit was dismissed on first instance but later admitted in appeal with suspensive effect.