Law in the Book and Law in Practice: Criminal Liability over Vessel-Source Marine Pollution in China

Nowadays, criminal liability over vessel-source pollution is a debatable issue worldwide. For example, after Erika and Prestige oil tanker spill disasters, the EU adopted Directive 2005/35/EC, which imposes criminal liability over vessel-source pollution. This raised the Intertanko Case in the European Court of Justice. The shipping industry tried to challenge the legality of Directive 2005/35/EC under international law. China is now a great shipping power as well as the second largest seafarers supplier in the world. Meanwhile, vast sea areas under China’s jurisdiction are under threat of vessel-source pollution. This presentation addresses criminal liability over vessel-source pollution in China. Relevant international law is first described. Then the presentation focuses on Chinese legal regime. There is an article of environmental crime in the Criminal Law of China. The Marine Environmental Protection Law also provides a link to impose Criminal Law on marine pollution. However, until now, there is no report about criminal liability over vessel-source pollution in any Chinese court. The presentation intends to answer: why there is a gap between law in the book and law in practice? Should China follow other countries such as the EU to impose criminal liability over vessel-source pollution? If so, how to improve the regime