美國OPA90下墨西哥灣油污案責任限制問題思考

A Reflection on Limitation of Liability for Oil Pollution of the Oil Leak in the Gulf of Mexico under the U.S. Oil Pollution Act of 1990

美國的油污損害賠償制度主要是通過1990年《油汙法》(OPA90)建構的。在墨西哥灣漏油事件中，鑽井平臺的所有人、承租人和被許可經營、使用的人均有權享有OPA90下油污責任限制的權利。但面對OPA90規定的極其嚴格的責任限制條件，英國石油公司放棄了7500萬美元的賠償限額。鑽井平臺的油污損害賠償具有特殊性，中國應以墨西哥灣油污案為鑑，反思鑽井平臺油污的無法可依局面。鑽井平臺不是傳統海事法律制度的客體，而是一種獨立的法律客體，為滿足海洋資源開發和海洋環境保護可持續發展的要求，應構建單獨的鑽井平臺油污損害賠償機制，賦予鑽井平臺油污責任限制權利，以「事故制」計算責任限額，規定嚴格的責任限制條件，實行責任限制喪失條件的舉證責任客觀化。

The institution of the compensation for oil pollution damage of U.S. is mainly constructed by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90). In the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, the owners, lessees and licensees are all entitled to the limitation of liability for oil pollution under OPA90. However, faced with the strict conditions of liability limitation under OPA90, British Petroleum Company finally gave up the limitation of $75 million. The offshore platform is not the traditional object of maritime law regimes, but a separate legal object. The compensation for the oil pollution damage by offshore drilling platform has its particularity. China should reflect on its lack of applicable law on the oil pollution of offshore drilling platform, establish a separate legal system for the oil pollution damage by offshore drilling platforms, give drilling platform the right of limitation of liability, calculate the limitation of liability on the「accident」basis, establish strict conditions for the limitation of liability, and objectify the burden of proof in the losing of limitation.