An environmental group has told a court that a “substantial error of law” was made when consent was granted for new oil and gas fields in Scottish waters.

Greenpeace and Uplift jointly launched a legal challenge at the Court of Session in Edinburgh over the decisions to approve the new developments.

They argue that consent for the Rosebank oil field north-west of Shetland and the Jackdaw gas field near Aberdeen should be suspended and reassessed.

The former Conservative-led UK government approved Shell’s proposals to develop the Jackdaw field in 2022 and approved plans by Equinor and Ithaca Energy to drill the Rosebank field last September.

The two environmental groups claim that the UK government, along with the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), failed to consider the full impact of emissions from burning oil and gas from the fields.

They also claim that their reasons for approving the schemes were not transparent and that the development will disrupt a marine protected area.

Ruth Crawford KC, representing Greenpeace UK, told the court on Tuesday, on the first day of the four-day hearing, that a “substantial error of law” had been made when consent was granted for the two schemes on the basis of limited information regarding their impact on the environment. and that the charity was seeking “remedy”.

“It was not simply a matter of discretion whether or not to consider emissions, it’s a matter of law that the impact of emissions had to be considered,” she said.

Ms Crawford called for both developments to be halted and for the oil companies involved in the projects to submit revised environmental impact assessments.

She said those assessments should include taking into account the so-called Scope 3 emissions that would be produced by burning all the oil and gas to be extracted from the fields.

Shell said Jackdaw was a “vital project for the UK’s energy security” and would provide enough fuel to heat 1.4 million UK homes.

A company spokesman said following Tuesday’s hearing: “From the outset, Jackdaw has been developed in compliance with all relevant consents and permits.”

He added: “Stopping work is an extremely complex process with significant technical and operational issues now that the infrastructure is in place and drilling has begun in the North Sea.”

Equinor similarly said Rosebank was “vital to the UK” in terms of local investment, jobs and energy security.

The case, before Lord Ericht, continues.