On Doctrine Of Liability Fixation In Eco-environmental Damage

Unlike the damage to citizens’ personal and property rights,the object of ecoenvironmental damage is the ecological environment itself,which is embodied in a good state of environmental factors,biological factors and related ecosystem functions that have an important impact on human production and life.Ecological and environmental damage can be remedied through civil laws and regulations.However,the doctrine of liability fixation in ecoenvironmental damage is not directly stipulated in China’s current legal norms,and the academic community has not reached general knowledge.The premise of studying the doctrine of liability fixation in eco-environmental damage is to clarify the form of civil liability for eco-environmental damage,and the relationship between the liability and the principle of liability.In the field of traditional civil law,the legal relationship of tort liability is essentially a special debt law relationship,that is,the debt of infringement.And there is only one form of tort liability,namely the settlement of debts,or compensation for losses.The doctrine of liability fixation is the criterion for judging whether the infringer should bear the adverse consequences of damage.But the tort law in China not only provide remedies for damages but also remedies for hazards,by introducing forms of liability with feature of absolute right,such as eliminating obstacles and eliminating risks.As a result,in China’s current tort liability laws and regulations,the doctrine of liability fixation is only compatible with such forms of liability such as compensation for damages and restitution,and it is difficult to match with such forms of liability such as eliminating obstacles and eliminating danger.Due to the special risk characteristics of eco-environment damage,the prevention of ecological environment damage is no longer an important function of private law,but an important function of public law.As a result,the theoretical dilemma that the doctrine of liability fixation are difficult to compatible with some forms of liability are eliminated.From the perspective of functionalism,the doctrine of liability fixation of civil liability for ecoenvironmental damage should be based on the function of each liability form.Taking function as the standard,civil liability for eco-environmental damage can be divided into relief liability,punitive liability and preventive liability.The forms of remedial liability stipulated in China’s tort liability laws and regulations include return of property,compensation for damages,restoration of original status,apology,elimination of influence and restoration of reputation.The form of relief liability in civil liability for eco-environmental damage is mainly manifested in eco-environmental restoration(including alternative restoration)or payment of eco-environmental restoration costs.The purpose of this type of liability form is to reasonably distribute the adverse burden of damage.There are three characteristics of the legal relationship of damage to the eco-environment that will affect the determination of the doctrine of liability fixation.First of all,the prosecution subject exercising the right of action on behalf of the damaged public interest is in an advantageous position in the litigation process,and does not need the tilted protection of the civil liability system for eco-environmental damage.Secondly,the risk of eco-environmental damage requires administrative agencies to assume the main obligation to prevent damage.Finally,the principle of fault liability applies to the relief responsibility for ecological and environmental damage,which is more conducive to addressing the major environmental problems in China.These factors together determine that the principle of liability for fault shall be applied to the relief civil liability for eco-environmental damage.The function and purpose of the form of punitive liability is to increase the cost of illegality and promote law-abiding,thereby reducing the ecological and environmental damage caused by wrongful illegal acts.The function of punitive liability determines that the principle of liability for fault shall be applied to the punitive civil liability for eco-environmental damage.The forms of preventive liability stipulated in China’s tort liability laws include stopping infringement,eliminating obstacles and eliminating dangers.The purpose of the traditional tort liability law stipulating this type of liability form is to provide sufficient and perfect relief for absolute rights such as property rights.In eco-environmental damage,for the non-fault damaging actors,the legitimacy of judicial organs’ judgment on preventive liability lies in the supplement of administrative power in individual cases.The principle of liability for no fault shall be applied to preventive civil liability for eco-environmental damage.