|
The
Precautionary Principle
by
Chuck Hall
 A
new approach to sustainable living and the environment is being
tried in many cities and states across the country. This new idea is
known as the Precautionary Principle. The Precautionary Principle is
new in that it doesn’t ask, "How much harm is
acceptable?" but instead asks, "How much harm is
avoidable?" The advantage of this approach is that it
encourages us to set goals, and to consider environmentally sound
ways of achieving those goals.
This
is an especially effective method for state and local governments to
use because it takes a proactive approach to environmental issues.
Think of it as using a little ‘preventive medicine’ to prevent
problems before they occur rather than trying to play catch-up once
the damage has been done. The Precautionary Principle gives us
something to be ‘for’ instead of something to be ‘against.’
There
are a few basic concepts in the Precautionary Principle. These are:
Preventative
anticipation: Meaning that if a policy or action could potentially
be harmful to the environment, the burden of proof lies with the
industry or institution to prove that it is safe. This means that
the government and the public would not have to prove that such a
policy is harmful in order to prevent its implementation.
Safeguarding:
This of this as ‘erring on the side of caution.’ This principle
says that safety margins should not even be approached, much less
breached.
Proportionality:
Basically this means that the risks of an action should not outweigh
the benefits. In other words, if there are a lot of unknowns about
the potential harm of an action, these unknowns are assumed to be
risks of harm until proven otherwise, instead of vice-versa, as is
common policy today.
Duty
of Care: The agency proposing the change has the duty to demonstrate
that it will not harm the environment. This is more proactive than
most current systems, where those who protest an action must prove
that it is harmful in order to stop the action.
The basic theory behind the Precautionary Principle is that
in complex systems, such as ecospheres and/or biospheres, there may
not be enough data to correctly judge the environmental impact of a
change. In such a case, the Precautionary Principle states that the
best way to ‘do no harm’ is to avoid any chance of risk. While
every new technology carries with it some inherent risk, the
Precautionary Principle automatically assumes a worst-case scenario
before implementing a new technology.
It is a way of looking at things, rather than an absolute
hard and fast rule. In general, it means assuming that any new
technology could be potentially harmful until proven otherwise, as
opposed to assuming that a new technology is safe until proven
otherwise. As a general guideline, it is now being considered in
environmental legislation throughout the country. If you are active
in environmental issues in your local government, ask them about the
Precautionary Principle. If they’ve never heard of it, now’s the
time to introduce them!
Chuck
Hall is a Sustainability Consultant and author. His latest book, Green
Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave, is
now available at Booklocker.com.
You may contact Chuck by email at: chuck@cultureartist.org or visit
the Culture Artist Web site at www.cultureartist.org.
|
