New rules on Compensation of Severe Environmental Damages
- Sweden
- 07/01/2009
- Roschier, Attorneys Ltd. - Sweden
New legislation on the restoration of environmental damages will enter into force on 1 July 2009. The purpose of the new legislation is to intensify businesses’ liability for severe environmental damages. As a main rule, businesses are strictly liable for the environmental damages. Said new legislation implements Directive 2004/35/EC and amends, inter alia, the Finnish Nature Conservation Act and the Gene Technology Act.
According to the new legislation, a business has a strict liability for the restoration of the environment and the damages caused to the environment (water, soil, protected species, etc.). As such damage can be considered, inter alia, the destruction of the living environment of a protected species.
The core idea of the new legislation is that the business shall restore the environment to the state in which it would be without the act causing the damage. The damage shall be assessed based on the deterioration of the natural resource in question. The new legislation assumes that the damage shall result from illegal acts. If the environmental damage is caused by an accident, the liability of the business will be adjusted.
