Pollution control

Pollution control covers permits, emission limits, monitoring duties, remediation orders and sanctions aimed at keeping air, water, soil and noise impacts within legally acceptable levels. In Switzerland it is shaped by federal environmental, water-protection and spatial-planning rules, with cantons carrying out much implementation. The concept also reflects core principles such as prevention, the polluter-pays rule and use of the best available or economically reasonable technology. Comparative law often treats pollution control as both administrative regulation and civil or criminal liability.