The Damage to the Environment: A View from Law

Environmental damage, being a compelling issue, is the main subject of the present paper studied from a legal perspective. In order to obtain a comprehensive understanding of what environmental damage consists of, a solid definition of environment, its components and limits, should be discussed in detail. The present paper is based on the broadly adopted definition of environment as a system that includes natural resources as well as social and cultural elements. In this context, the concept of damage to the environment is considered to be sui generis in the sense that it is more complex than any other kind of damage. Humans are part of nature, constituting a basic environmental component; therefore, damage may be classified in two categories; indirect damage to the environment and environmental damage direct to people. From this classification the following major issue arises:, if Law does not acknowledge this distinction, damage to the environment may not be properly regulated because of failure to take under consideration the unique characteristics and consequences each type of damage entails. Ιn other words and given that environmental damage is a crucial issue of not solely private but also global interest, in order for Law to properly regulate damage to the environment, this damage classification needs to be accounted for. It is argued that more flexible mechanisms are needed to solve environmental conflicts with the questions expected to arise being the following: Is damage to the environment only a legal concern?, How can a judge quantify the damage?, Who is the competent judge if damage is not static?, Who has the right to file a lawsuit, the people affected or all the interested parties?, What criterium may Law offer to face damage to the environment?, In what cases damage to the environment may be blameworthy? For the purpose of providing a wellgrounded answer to the above questions difficulties in the legal process are analyzed in trials related to environmental damage. Based on the synthesis method, also known as Cartesian or French method, it is observed that only in a few cases the outcome of the trial actually involved a sense of environmental responsibility. Finally, the conclusion reached is that there exists the need of more flexible mechanisms to solve environmental conflicts.