Moving Further Upstream: From Toxics Reduction to the Precautionary Principle

Abstract

SYNOPSISEarly policies to reduce the amount of toxic waste in the environment focused on cleaning up downstream sources of pollution, such as toxic disposal sites. Public attention in the 1980s encouraged both industry and government to develop an alternative to this command-and-control approach. This article describes the emergence of that alternative-pollution prevention-and its application in Massachusetts through the 1989 Toxics Use Reduction Act. Pollution prevention focuses on the sources of pollution, both metaphorically and physically, more upstream than its predecessors. The success of the Toxics Use Reduction Act in Massachusetts helped create an opportunity where an alternative pollution prevention paradigm could develop. That paradigm, the precautionary principle, is popular among environment activists because it focuses further upstream than pollution prevention by calling attention to the role the social construction of risk plays in decisions regarding the use of hazardous substances. The authors examine the evolution of the precautionary principle through an investigation of three major pathways in its development and expansion. The article concludes with a discussion of the increased potential for protecting public health and the environment afforded by this new perspective.

School Custodians and Green Cleaners

“…The Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI), established in 1989 by the Toxics Use Reduction Act, has worked with state industries to exchange toxic substances for nonhazardous substances in a cost-effective and health-protective manner (Mayer, 2004;Mayer, Brown, & Linder, 2002). In 1996, TURI established the Toxics Use Reduction Networking (TURN) grantmaking program to help community organizations and municipalities develop toxics reduction programs (Toxics Use Reduction Institute, 2003).…”

The role of uncertainties in the design of international water treaties: an historical perspective

“…The premise behind this approach is that uncertainty is stochastic and thus inevitable. The solution is hence to either adopt a risk avoidance tactic by prescribing precautionary policies to limit activities (O'Riordan and Jordan 1995;Dratwa 2002;Mayer et al 2002) or to leave room for change by including flexibility and adaptability to the design of management systems (Pahl-Wostl and Jeffrey 2007). Agreements using this strategy may include provisions for consultation, a broadening of cooperation, mutual assistance, indirect allocation, or include a reliance on the ambiguous language of international law.…”

Environmental toxins; their impact on children's health

“…In the past, action tended to be taken only when a toxic environmental effect was clearly defined. By contrast, ''the precautionary principle'' accepts that scientific uncertainly is a fact of life, 5 and is formalised in article 174 of the EU treaty. In practice, this means that when regulators are faced with uncertainty about a toxic (or other) environmental threat, they have a duty to respond and not wait until their worst fears are realised.…”