Facts
The Bourgeoisie of A. and the Municipality of A. (the defendants) agreed to jointly operate the "X." quarry. They entrusted the operation of the quarry to company B., while remaining the principals of the project. Between 1996 and 1998, company D. carried out 75 blasting operations in the quarry, causing damage (cracks) to the homes of four families (the plaintiffs) located approximately 500 meters from the quarry.
The plaintiffs filed a request for future evidence with the District Court, which appointed an expert to determine the origin of the cracks. The expert concluded that some of the cracks resulted from the blasting operations, which had destabilized the terrain. The plaintiffs then filed a claim for damages against the defendants.
Considerations
According to the Federal Tribunal, the defendants must be considered the "operators" of the quarry within the meaning of Art. 27 of the Federal Law on Explosive Substances (LExpl). Although they had entrusted the technical management and execution of the work to companies, they assumed the overall management of the site, collected the profits, and bore the economic risks. They therefore had control over the dangerous activity and the ability to interrupt the blasting at any time.
Regarding the statute of limitations, the Federal Tribunal ruled that the one-year period provided for in Art. 60(1) of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO)…