TOURNAI, Belgium — A Belgian farmer is facing off against oil giant TotalEnergies in court on Wednesday, arguing the French company should pay for damage caused by climate change, in the latest lawsuit by environmental activists against big energy companies.

Ahead of the hearing, Hugues Falys told a crowd of some 50 supporters, who had turned up in the cold rain, that he brought his claim “to force TotalEnergies to change its practices” and make its operations less harmful “for society in general and agriculture in particular.”

The lawsuit, backed by environmental organization Greenpeace, seeks financial compensation and demands TotalEnergies reduce its oil and gas production to slow the greenhouse gas emissions that warm the planet.

The company did not reply to a request for comment bu

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