ABSTRACT
Recent events show that pollution and damage or impairment to the environment in a cross-border context is a lively issue within the EU today. This exploratory chapter highlights situations of (cross-border) pollution inside the EU that raise the necessity of and opportunities for fine-tuning the understanding of the concept of pollution and related obligations, which are of crucial importance for the protection of human health and ecosystems in Europe. Despite the quite ancient tone of many of the related international or European provisions, a new context, fed by new ambitions and scientific knowledge, tends to promote stricter approaches to situations of cross-border-related environmental issues and considerably lower the acceptability of pollution. The field is still underexplored, however, and might benefit from more strategic litigation.
