EU Lawmakers Back Overhaul of Environmental Liability Framework

Companies operating in the European Union should be subject to a single environmental liability regime rather than the existing 27 national systems that are inconsistent and poorly coordinated, European Parliament lawmakers said in a resolution adopted Thursday.

An updated EU liability framework should require consistent reporting of incidents so companies would have to pay for any environmental damage they cause, according to the non-binding resolution. The EU also should reverse the current burden of proof so companies involved in incidents would have to prove they couldn’t have known about risks to the environment, the resolution stated.

In addition, the ...