预防性环境民事公益诉讼中“重大风险”认定的问题研究

Research on the Identification of “Major Risks” in Preventive Environmental Civil Public Interest Litigation

摘要: 预防性环境民事公益诉讼作为现代环境司法领域的一项重要制度创新，其核心目的在于前瞻性地介入环境保护，旨在避免生态环境遭受不可逆转的损害或减缓损害程度的进一步扩大。然而，尽管预防性环境民事公益诉讼的设立初衷具有前瞻性和重要性，但当前该制度在实际操作中仍面临诸多挑战与不完善之处。其中，最为关键的问题之一在于“重大风险”这一核心概念在立法及司法解释层面的模糊性。具体而言，“重大风险”的界定标准、风险评估的对象范围、风险认定的主体资格以及具体的认定程序和方法等，在现行的法律文件中均未得到明确而详尽的阐述。这种法律上的空白不仅给司法实践带来了困惑，也可能导致预防性环境民事公益诉讼的适用效果大打折扣，从而影响到环境保护的效率和效果。鉴于上述问题，我们有必要对预防性环境民事公益诉讼制度进行深入的反思和完善，确保预防性环境民事公益诉讼制度的有效实施。

Abstract: Preventive environmental civil public interest litigation, as a significant institutional innovation in the modern field of environmental justice, is corely aimed at proactively intervening in environmental protection to prevent irreversible harm to the ecological environment or to mitigate the further expansion of damage. Despite the forward-looking and crucial nature of its establishment, the system still confronts numerous challenges and imperfections in practical operation. One of the most crucial issues lies in the ambiguity surrounding the core concept of “significant risk” at the legislative and judicial interpretation levels. Specifically, the definition criteria for “significant risk”, the scope of objects for risk assessment, the qualifications of risk identification entities, as well as the specific procedures and methodologies for identification, are not clearly and exhaustively elaborated in the current legal documents. This legal void not only perplexes judicial practice but also potentially compromises the application effectiveness of preventive environmental civil public interest litigation, thereby impacting the efficiency and outcomes of environmental protection efforts. In light of these issues, it is imperative to undertake a profound reflection and improvement of the preventive environmental civil public interest litigation system to ensure its effective implementation.