Earthquakes in nuclear liability conventions: a study in international disaster law

Abstract

At approximately 6:24 AM CET on the morning of 22 March 2020, a 5.3 Mw or 5.5 ML earthquake hit Zagreb, Croatia, with an epicentre 7 kilometres north of the city centre. Over 1900 buildings are reported to have been made uninhabitable by earthquake damage. While the earthquake was felt also in the neighbouring Slovenia, the nuclear power plant Krško – which is situated in Slovenia, but roughly 50 kilometres north-west of Zagreb – remained unaffected. However, the event triggered the question of applicability of the existing international nuclear liability conventions to cases of nuclear incidents, occurring as a consequence of a natural disaster. This article aims to analyse various nuclear liability regimes, established under existing international conventions, with respect to those nuclear damages occurring as a consequence of an earthquake. Attention is paid to the question of which subject is to be held liable under these various liability regimes and what would be the nature of such liability. Further, the article addresses the question of how the states concerned could strengthen the existing liability regime in such circumstances, in particular with respect to the region of Central Europe.