Liability and Compensation for Environmental Damage Caused by Ship-Source Oil Pollution: Actionability of Claims
The legal regime of claims in respect of environmental damage attributable to ship-source oil pollution is inchoate at best, at least in terms of international convention law although the issue of its compensability is partially addressed in the 1992 versions of the Civil Liability and Fund Conventions. Indeed, the inclusion of provisions on conditions which must be met for environmental damage to be compensable under convention law by virtually preempting any express consideration of the establishment of locus standi of the claimant for such damage makes for an anomalous situation in the state of the international law. This paper attempts to probe into this perceived lacuna in the law by inter alia, examining the notion of marine environmental damage or damage to the marine environment as these terms are perceived in the context of liability and compensation under the relevant international regimes. It is apparent that the issue of locus standi of the claimant for environmental damage is left to be addressed by domestic law. This perhaps is attributed to the lack of uniformity in national jurisdictions regarding the validity of a cause of action in claims for such damage. It is submitted that the actionability of such claims rests on the locus standi of the claimant, which in many jurisdictions is not available in the absence of a proprietary interest in the subject matter which is the environment. It is further submitted that the environment comprises a tangible as well as an intangible dimension which adds to the complexity of the problem. The paper explores the various co-related issues and legal implications associated with the establishment of locus standi in respect of claims for environmental damage including the utilisation of certain legal principles such as the public trust and parens patriae doctrines to that end.
Proshanto K. Mukherjee
Maritime Safety and Environmental Protection,World Maritime University,Malmo, Sweden.Chancellor, CFNEC Maritime Campus,Colombo,Sri Lanka
国际会议
Intl Conference on Marine Pollution Liability & Policy(国际海洋油污会议--海洋污染责任与政策国际研讨会)
大连
英文
98-117
2009-06-04（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）