Green Risk Management: Employ the Precautionary Principle

In the green world, we talk about the Precautionary Principle quite a bit, and though it sounds simple and logical, it is a complex issue for policy-makers.

The Precautionary Principle is based on the premise that we just need to suspect something will cause harm; we don't need to prove it. According to the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the Precautionary Principle "is applied in the circumstances where there are reasonable grounds for concern that an activity is, or could, cause harm but where there is an uncertainty about the probability of the risk and the degree of harm."

It's an important distinction in environmental protection because chemical companies, bioengineering firms, oil extractors and other companies often claim their product or methods are safe for humans and the environment because there is no absolute proof that they aren't.

The Precautionary Principle has perhaps been best implemented and utilized in the European Union, where preliminary scientific study need only show reasonable grounds for concern that an action will harm the environment or human, animal or plant health in order for a government to take action.

In the EU, the Precautionary Principle has been applied to food safety, fishing quotas, and chemicals - but not without a fight from the companies this policy affects.

While some argue the Precautionary Principle sets out an impossible burden of proof for new products, environmentalists and many consumers who worry about the impact of pesticides, genetically modified foods, over fishing, volatile organic compounds, plastics and other toxins welcome the EU's tough stance on the issue.

Now the Obama Administration appears to be following the EU's lead, at least in regard to chemicals. In a Sept. 29 speech, EPA administrator Lisa Jackson outlined reform of chemical management law, the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act.

Most important among the principles of this reform is the idea that the EPA will have authority to set safety standards based on scientific risk assessment. "Sound science should be the basis for the assessment of chemical risks, while recognizing the need to assess and manage risk in the face of uncertainty," the EPA's Essential Principles for Reform of Chemicals Management Legislations states. In other words, the EPA will no longer have to show proof of harm.