The claim alleges that the pipeline violates Uganda's Constitution and breaches the country's environmental and climate legislation.
Ugandan farmers launched a case in the United Kingdom's High Court on Tuesday against the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, seeking to apply Ugandan constitutional, environmental and climate law to EACOP Ltd, the project's UK-registered company.
The claim, filed before the pipeline begins operations, asks the court to enforce Uganda's legal protections against a company incorporated in England and Wales.
The lawsuit centres on EACOP, a 1,443-km (897-mile) pipeline that would transport crude from Uganda's oilfields to Tanzania's coast. The project is majority-owned by French energy company TotalEnergies.
The claimants say a successful ruling could ultimately prevent the pipeline from becoming operational. They also say the project would affect more than 100,000 people and cross critical freshwater systems and protected habitats.
Climate legislation
The claim alleges that the pipeline violates Uganda's Constitution, which guarantees citizens the right to a clean and healthy environment, and breaches the country's environmental and climate legislation.
EACOP maintains the project complies with national laws and international standards.
Environmental campaigners estimate that the pipeline will generate about 372 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over its lifetime—more than 58 times Uganda's current annual emissions.
They argue that the project will intensify the climate crisis, increasing the vulnerability of communities already grappling with floods, prolonged droughts and other climate-related disasters.
Environmental sensitivity
Opponents have also raised concerns about the pipeline's route through environmentally sensitive areas.
They say it passes through protected forests, elephant habitats and more than 200 rivers, including a 460-kilometre stretch within the Lake Victoria basin.
Campaigners warn that any major oil spill in the basin could have severe consequences for Lake Victoria, the River Nile and water supplies relied upon by millions of people across East Africa.
Conservation groups further argue that the project threatens nearly 2,000 square kilometres of protected ecosystems, placing wildlife—including the endangered Eastern chimpanzee populations in the Murchison Falls and Bugoma Forest regions—at greater risk.
EACOP says that measures are in place to minimise environmental impacts and support affected communities.
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