We actually have a system in place to do exactly this. The EPA + Taxes (of various kinds) are how companies/individuals pay for environmental damage, and it's

We actually have a system in place to do exactly this. The EPA + Taxes (of various kinds) are how companies/individuals pay for environmental damage, and it's also how companies/individuals pay to protect the environment. Cleanups use tax money, research into potential regulations to minimize impact uses tax money, etc. So it's not some kind of outlandish idea, but at the moment the EPA is REALLY buddy/buddy with large companies so they're currently effectively neutered.