Environmental Responsibility in the Context of Administrative Law

Abstract

The balance of nature is a prerequisite of life and the existence of humans, who constitute an element of the whole ecosystem. Nature conservation is regulated by the EU law. One of the EU priorities is combatting global warming and protection of the environment. This has numerous implications in the Polish legal order. One issue that is supposed to be crucial for environment protection is the question of liability for damage done to the natural environment. Under Polish law, responsibility for any such damage has a constitutional character, since by virtue of Art. 86 of the Polish Constitution, every entity is obliged to care for the natural environment and bears responsibility for any worsening of it. Given such a legal disposition, the risk of harm done as a result of an activity detrimental to the environment should encumber the one who undertakes such an activity for his or her own material gains.