LUXEMBOURG Law and Practice Contributed by: Nathalie Prüm-Carré, Inès Goeminne and Georges Gratia, Elvinger Hoss Prussen
mits and those relating to classified establishments. Environmental laws do not provide a specific proce- dure for transferring administrative authorisations. 4.5 Consequences of Breaching Permits/ Approvals Failure to comply with an administrative authorisation may result in administrative sanctions, such as: • setting a deadline for compliance; • the suspension or closure of the site or operation; and • where applicable, criminal sanctions in the form of a fine or, in some cases, imprisonment. In Luxembourg, several liability regimes may apply in the event of environmental damage or a breach of environmental law. The Law of 20 April 2009 on environmental liability, as amended, imposes an obligation on those liable for environmental damage to remedy the damage. This law establishes a framework for environmental liability based on the “polluter pays” principle, with a view to preventing and remedying environmental damage. The damage covered includes that caused to protected species and natural habitats, water and soil. Any natural or legal person affected or likely to be affected by environmental damage may ask the Minister or the relevant authority to take measures to prevent or remedy damage falling within the scope of this law. 5. Environmental Liability 5.1 Key Types of Liability The Law of 21 March 2012 on waste management, as amended, enshrines the “polluter pays” principle and introduces strict civil liability to reinforce the liability of waste producers and holders. Ordinary tort law also applies. The liability regime of the Civil Code protects people and property, and ensures compensation for the damage suffered. Envi- ronmental damage can only be remedied to the extent that it constitutes damage to a person or to property belonging to a person.
In addition, criminal liability may be incurred in the event of breaches of legal provisions on environmental protection, particularly those arising from the Law of 18 July 2018 on the protection of nature and natural resources, as amended. 5.2 Liability for Historical Environmental Incidents or Damage The owner of a plot of land may be held liable for his- torical environmental damage, in their capacity as a producer or holder of waste, on the basis of the Law of 21 March 2012 on waste management, as amended. 5.3 Key Defences In general, each liability regime comes with its own grounds of defence and exemptions. Therefore, under the Law of 21 March 2012 on waste management, as amended, the producer of waste may be exempted from liability by demonstrating, for example, that the alleged damage resulted from the fault of the victim or of a person for whom the victim is responsible, or from force majeure. The Law of 20 April 2009 on environmental liability, as amended, also provides for a number of limita- tions and exceptions. Certain situations fall outside its scope, such as damage that is time-barred (where more than 30 years have elapsed since the event that caused the damage), damage that occurred before the law came into force or damage that is related to specific activities that ended before that date. Similarly, under this law, the operator is not liable for the costs of remedial measures if the operator can prove that the damage was caused by a third party or that the operator was not at fault or negligent. 6. Corporate Liability 6.1 Liability for Environmental Damage or Breaches of Environmental Law In Luxembourg, legal persons may be held liable for environmental damage on the basis of the general law on the criminal liability of legal persons (the Law of 3 March 2010 introducing the criminal liability of legal persons into the Criminal Code and the Code of Crimi- nal Procedure).
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