THE POLLUTER PAYS PRINCIPLE
THE POLLUTER PAYS PRINCIPLE

Summary/Abstract: The polluter pays principle, alongside precaution, prevention and correction at the source represent the four pillars on which the entire system of environmental tort liability is built. Subject to ample international debate, the aforementioned principle came into being as proof of modern society’s growing concern when faced with the dangers of industrial and technological development. The irrefutable reality of pollution, as well as its negative consequences on the ecosystem, has made it imperative to identify the major infringers who pose a threat to the environment and to somehow devise a proper system of holding them accountable for their actions. This endeavour is made all the more difficult by the fact that, behind each and every major environmental disaster, there lays a tangled web of causes and contributing factors, which is more often than not impossible to decipher. The goal of this article is to present an overview of the defining characteristics of the polluter pays principle, as well as a few examples of its practical application in international case-law.

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