Zbornik Radova: Pravni Fakultet u Novom Sadu (Jan 2018)
Protocol on civil liability and compensation for damage caused by the transboundary effects of industrial accidents on transboundary waters
Abstract
Protocol on Civil Liability and Compensation for Damage Caused by the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents on Transboundary Waters (the Protocol) was adopted in 2003 under auspices of The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The Protocol aims to give individuals affected by transboundary impact of industrial accidents on international watercourses a legal claim for adequate and prompt compensation. The Protocol channels liability towards operators performing hazardous activity. Operators will be liable for accidents in an installation, including tailing dams, as well as accidents during transportation on the site of a hazardous activity or during off-site transportation via pipelines. The notion of damage is broadly defined and encompasses loss of life or personal injury, loss of, or damage to, property, loss of income, the cost of measures of reinstatement of the impaired transboundary waters, and the cost of response measures. The system of the Protocol is based on objective liability. However, strict liability rule is somewhat alleviated by a limited set of exemptions and by financial limits of liability depending on the risk of the activity. Liability limits are coupled with mandatory financial security requirements.
