The precautionary principle o Precautionary principle refers to the set of protection measures adopted in a situation in which there is a scientifically possible but uncertain risk of inflicting harm to public health or the environment.
The rapid development of science and technology has brought many advances to society, but it has also brought many risks to the environment and human health. Many of these risks cannot be scientifically proven, their existence is only hypothetical.
The commitment to the environment and the world that future generations will inherit has led society to apply precautionary principles in the face of scientific and technological advances. Therefore, this principle includes a series of measures that are applied in a given situation, which have their origin in ethics due to lack of scientific evidence..
We cannot say that the precautionary principle is a new concept, but the scope it has acquired is novel. Originally, the precautionary principle applied mainly to environmental issues; over time the concept has evolved, being applied much more widely.
Article index
Numerous definitions of this concept can be found in international treaties and declarations, as well as in the ethical literature. However, through a comparative analysis of many of these it is possible to establish some characteristics inherent to this ethical practice:
It is applied when there is scientific uncertainty about the nature, magnitude, probability or causality of a certain damage.
In this scenario, mere speculation is not enough. The existence of a scientific analysis is necessary and that the risk posed is not easily refutable by science.
Given that the precautionary principle deals with damages whose consequences are little known, it is not necessary to quantify the impact to apply it..
When a more certain scenario is available, in which the impact of the damage and the risk can be quantified, what is applied is the principle of prevention.
The precautionary principle deals with those hazards that are considered unacceptable. The consideration of unacceptable varies in the different treaties on the term: some speak of "serious damage", others of "damage or harmful effects" or "serious and irreversible damage".
However, all the definitions available in the literature on the concept coincide in using terms based on scales of values. Consequently, the precautionary principle is based on a moral judgment on the administration of damage..
The measures implemented in the context of a precautionary principle must be proportional to the magnitude of the damage. The costs and the degree of prohibition are two variables that help to assess the proportionality of the measures.
Within the precautionary principle, measures are established aimed at reducing or eliminating the risk of damage, but measures are also designed to control the damage in the event that it occurs..
Faced with an uncertain risk, continuous learning protocols are applied. Search in a systematic and continuous way to be able to understand the risk and measure it, allows that the threats treated under the precautionary principle can be managed under more traditional risk control systems.
Just as the definition of the concept is diverse, so are its applications. Some cases in which the precautionary principle has been applied are the following:
Although some authors affirm that the precautionary principle was born in Sweden, many others affirm that Germany was born with the 1970 draft law.
This draft law, approved in 1974, aimed to regulate air pollution and regulate the different sources of pollution: noise, vibrations, among others..
The mineral extraction of asbestos began in 1879. In 1998 the world extraction of this material reached two million tons. In its beginnings, the harmful effects of this material on human health were not known; currently known to be the main cause of mesothelioma.
The difficulty in relating the causality between this mineral and mesothelioma was that the incubation of this disease is very long. However, once the disease is declared it is fatal within a year.
In this context of scientific uncertainty, throughout history various alerts and interventions have been carried out aimed at restricting the damage..
In 1898 the UK industrial inspector warned of the damaging effects of asbestos. Eight years later, in 1906, a French factory drew up a report that included the deaths of 50 textile workers who had been exposed to asbestos. The same report recommended establishing controls over its use.
In 1931, after various scientific tests and the publication of the Merewether Report, The United Kingdom established a regulation on the use of asbestos in manufacturing activities.
This regulation also obliged companies to compensate workers affected by asbestosis; this regulation was barely complied with.
In 1955 Richard Doll demonstrated scientific evidence of the high risk of lung cancer suffered by workers exposed to asbestos at the Rochdale factory in the United Kingdom.
Subsequently, various reports were published identifying mesothelioma cancers in countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, and South Africa, among others. Between 1998 and 1999, asbestos was banned in the European Union.
Today it is known that if the application of measures had been established when the risk was plausible but not demonstrable, thousands of lives would have been saved and millions of dollars saved..
However, and despite the measures applied in developed countries, the use of asbestos continues to be widespread in developing countries..
The precautionary principle is currently collected in treated numbers from around the world. Some of these are as follows:
- Bamako Convention (1991), which establishes the prohibition of importing hazardous waste into Africa.
- Stockholm Convention (2001) on Organic Pollutants.
- OECD Ministerial Declaration (2001) on Sustainable Development Policy.
- Regulation on food safety in the European Union (2002).
Yet No Comments