Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- General editors' preface
- Notes on the contributors
- Table of treaties
- Table of legislation
- List of abbreviations
- Part I Environmental liability in Europe
- 1 International and supranational systems of environmental liability in Europe
- 2 Some observations on the law applicable to transfrontier environmental damage
- Part II The case studies
- Part A Scope of liable persons
- Part B Causation and multiple tortfeasors
- Part C Remedies and legal standing
- Case 15 Contaminated land
- Case 16 The polluted river
- Case 17 The oil spill
- Case 18 Contaminated drinking water
- Part III Comparison, summary and conclusions
- Bibliography
- Index
Case 17 - The oil spill
from Part C - Remedies and legal standing
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 July 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- General editors' preface
- Notes on the contributors
- Table of treaties
- Table of legislation
- List of abbreviations
- Part I Environmental liability in Europe
- 1 International and supranational systems of environmental liability in Europe
- 2 Some observations on the law applicable to transfrontier environmental damage
- Part II The case studies
- Part A Scope of liable persons
- Part B Causation and multiple tortfeasors
- Part C Remedies and legal standing
- Case 15 Contaminated land
- Case 16 The polluted river
- Case 17 The oil spill
- Case 18 Contaminated drinking water
- Part III Comparison, summary and conclusions
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
A is the keeper of a super-tanker. Due to a breakdown of instruments the tanker springs a leak and a huge amount of oil is spilled. A thick oil slick gets washed ashore, where it covers a popular beach area and lots of sea birds and some mammals.
Who is obliged to take clean-up measures? Are private organisations entitled to bring legal action and/or to undertake clean-up measures?
Is A liable for the costs of clean-up measures undertaken by public authorities and/or private organisations?
The local fishing industry and tourism facilities suffer severe loss of profits. Do they have a right to claim damages from A?
Large amounts of seawater are contaminated. Is A liable for this damage? Who has the right to claim this damage, and how is the damage evaluated?
Comparative remarks
Comparison
Clean-up costs (Cases 16, Question (a), and Case 17, Question (a))
In nearly all European countries, remediation costs for water pollution are covered by tort law. This includes fault-based liability and recovery according to the laws of the neighbourhood, or nuisance in the common law countries.
Most countries also provide for strict liability remedies. In Finland, strict liability for water contamination is governed by the Environmental Damages Act 1994. In Portugal, strict liability applies if the damage is caused by an objectively dangerous activity (Article 23 LAP). Compensation for significant ecological damage can be obtained both according to Article 23 LAP and according to the Base Law on the Environment (LBA).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Environmental Liability and Ecological Damage In European Law , pp. 520 - 559Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008