PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE: CHARACTERISTICS AND APPLICATIONS - ENVIRONMENT - 2025

The precautionary principle or precautionary principle refers to the set of protection measures that are adopted in a situation in which there is a scientifically possible but uncertain risk of inflicting damage 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 new. Originally, the precautionary principle applied mainly to environmental issues; Over time the concept has evolved, being applied much more widely.

characteristics

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 a multitude of these it is possible to establish some inherent characteristics of this ethical practice:

Applies in situations of scientific uncertainty

It is applied when there is scientific uncertainty about the nature, magnitude, probability or causality of a given 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.

It is not quantifiable

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.

It is based on a moral judgment

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 the damage.

It is proportional to the risk

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.

It works by restricting and containing the damage

Within the precautionary principle, measures are established to reduce or eliminate the risk of damage, but measures are also designed to control the damage in the event that it occurs.

Surrounds himself with continuous research protocols

Faced with an uncertain risk, continuous learning protocols are applied. Searching systematically and continuously to be able to understand risk and measure it, allows threats treated under the precautionary principle to be managed under more traditional risk control systems.

Applications

Just as the definition of the concept is diverse, its applications are also diverse. Some cases in which the precautionary principle has been applied are the following:

German case: origin of the precautionary principle

Although some authors claim that the precautionary principle was born in Sweden, many others claim that Germany was born with the 1970 draft law.

This draft bill, approved in 1974, sought to regulate air pollution and regulate the different sources of pollution: noise, vibrations, among others.

Asbestos case

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; it is currently known to be the leading 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.

First warnings

In 1898 the UK industrial inspector warned of the damaging effects of asbestos. Eight years later, in 1906, a factory in France drew up a report in which it included the death 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 enforced.

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 widely extended in developing countries.

Present

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.

- Ministerial Declaration of the OECD (2001) on the policy of sustainable development.

- Regulation on food safety in the European Union (2002).

References

1. UNESCO. (2005). Report of the Group of Experts on the precautionary principle. Paris: UNESCO workshops.
2. Precautionary principle. On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 6,2018, from en.wikipedia.org.
3. Andorno, R. Principle of precaution. Latin American Dictionary of Bioethics (pp. 345-347). Consulted from uniesco.org.
4. Jimenez Arias, L. (2008). Biothics and the Environment (pp. 72-74). Consulted from books.google.es.
5. Andorno, R. (2004). The Precautionary Principle: A New Legal Standard for a Technological Age. Consulted from academia.edu.