Precautionary principle how to#

an expression of a need by decision-makers to anticipate harm before it occurs.

Two ideas lie at the core of the principle: : 34 Many definitions of the precautionary principle exist: Precaution may be defined as 'caution in advance', 'caution practiced in the context of uncertainty', or informed prudence.

The principle was also derived from religious beliefs that particular areas of science and technology should be restricted as they 'belong to the realm of God', as postulated by Prince Charles and Pope Benedict XVI. conclude that 'more scientific uncertainty as to the distribution of a future risk – that is, a larger variability of beliefs – should induce society to take stronger prevention measures today.' Authors such as Epstein (1980) and Arrow and Fischer (1974) show that 'irreversibility of possible future consequences' creates a 'quasi- option effect' which should induce a ' risk-neutral' society to favour current decisions that allow for more flexibility in the future. In economics, the Precautionary Principle has been analyzed in terms of 'the effect on rational decision-making', of 'the interaction of irreversibility' and ' uncertainty'. In 1988, Konrad von Moltke described the German concept for a British audience, which he translated into English as the precautionary principle. The concept was introduced into environmental legislation along with other innovative (at that time) mechanisms such as 'polluter pays', principle of pollution prevention and responsibility for survival of future ecosystems. The concept 'precautionary principle' is generally considered to have arisen in English from a translation of the German term Vorsorgeprinzip in the 1970s in response to forest degradation and sea pollution, where German lawmakers adopted clean air act banning use of certain substances suspected in causing the environmental damage even though evidence of their impact was inconclusive at that time.

4.2 Blocking innovation and progress generally.

4.1 Internal inconsistency: applying strong PP risks causing harm.

3.5 Animal sentience precautionary principle.

3.2 International agreements and declarations.In some legal systems, as in law of the European Union, the application of the precautionary principle has been made a statutory requirement in some areas of law.

Precautionary principle how to#

The principle has become an underlying rationale for a large and increasing number of international treaties and declarations in the fields of sustainable development, environmental protection, health, trade, and food safety, although at times it has attracted debate over how to accurately define it and apply it to complex scenarios with multiple risks. These protections should be relaxed only if further scientific findings emerge that provide sound evidence that no harm will result. It implies that there is a social responsibility to protect the public from exposure to such harm, when scientific investigation has found a plausible risk. The principle acknowledges that while the progress of science and technology has often brought great benefit to humanity, it has also contributed to the creation of new threats and risks. For example, a government may decide to limit or restrict the widespread release of a medicine or new technology until it has been thoroughly tested. taking a particular course of action) and conclusive evidence is not yet available.

The principle is often used by policy makers in situations where there is the possibility of harm from making a certain decision (e.g. Interrelation between safety factor and reliability is extensively studied by engineers and philosophers. It was apparently suggested, in civil engineering, by Belindor in 1729. In an engineering context, the precautionary principle manifests itself as the factor of safety, discussed in detail in the monograph of Elishakoff. Critics argue that it is vague, self-cancelling, unscientific and an obstacle to progress. It emphasizes caution, pausing and review before leaping into new innovations that may prove disastrous. The precautionary principle (or precautionary approach) is a broad epistemological, philosophical and legal approach to innovations with potential for causing harm when extensive scientific knowledge on the matter is lacking. For the Wikipedia guideline, see Wikipedia:Precautionary principle.