Blameless Contamination: New State Legislation Regulating Liability for Agricultural Chemicals in Groundwater

摘要

Apprehension about liability costs from 'blameless' contamination associated with pesticide usage prompted agricultural interest groups to advocate new legislation, called the 'groudwater exemption legislation,' to limit producers' liability for certain damages arising from qualifying agricultural usage chemicals. The new legislation raises several questions concerning contamination from chemical usage: (1) what is blameless contamination, (2) what legal liability standards govern blameless contamination of groundwater, (3) what do individual groundwater exemption laws provide, (4) have the state groundwater exemption laws incorporated blameless contamination criteria, (5) what are groundwater protection funds, and (6) what options are available for the placement of liability from blameless contamination. The article addresses these questions through an evaluation of state groundwater exemption legislation enacted as responses to blameless contamination by chemical pollution of groundwater.