Since the Rio declaration which held in Brazil in 1992 on the Environment, the draftsmen of the law have often taken recourse to principles when regulating new areas of the law, one of which includes the polluter pays principle. Cameroon has domesticated this principle in its 1996 Environmental management law which is one of the most important principles of international environmental law. The fine imposed on polluters in Cameroon is paltry and therefore cannot really achieve one of the most desired objectives of punishment which is deterrence .The purpose of this paper is to investigate the nature of the liability of the polluter and the quantum of damages imposed on the polluter when he pollutes the environment. The paper is also aimed at investigating whether the principle is an appropriate tool for the liability of polluters under Cameroonian environmental law. In other words the aim is to investigate why the fine levied on polluters is derisory and whether the principle is an effective tool in the compensation of victims of environmental pollution. The paper does so through a reading of records mainly from documentary and Internet search. The data thus collected constitutes the sources from which the law is drawn, stated and analysed in the light of the stated aim of the paper. The results inter alia identify that the polluter pays principle is suppose to be an effective tool in the compensation of victims of environmental pollution but for it to be effective, it must comply to other international law principles such as that of equality, non-discrimination and most importantly the quantum of the damages imposed on the defaulter should be severe enough so as to deter not only the violator from committing the criminal act in future but also to prevent others from following suit. The said results also highlight the limitations and advantages of the polluter pay principle. The results are significant as they expose gaps in the current law in relation to the poll