From this perspective the
precautionary principle may be seen as a basis to counter existing barriers and thereby to avoid predictable surprises.
In February 2000, the European Commission issued a Bulletin on the
precautionary principle to explain with important details its opinions on what this principle represents and how it should be used in the EU environmental policy decisions.
The
precautionary principle states that, "in cases of serious or irreversible threats to the health of humans or ecosystems, acknowledged scientific uncertainty should not be used as a reason to postpone preventive measures" (Martuzzi and Tickner, 2004: 7).
Using mathematical models, they argued that GMOs fall squarely under the
precautionary principle because their risk was systemic.
We should note that the European communities invoked the
Precautionary Principle, that the measures it implemented are based on a risk assessment.
The "strong" version of the
precautionary principle has been significantly criticized.
This is the requirement of the
precautionary principle [2 and 15].
The EEA recommends wider use of the
precautionary principle to reduce potential risks of largely untested technologies and chemicals.
Strong versions of the
precautionary principle have been
By framing the issues in this way, Kessler (2011) intimated that the
precautionary principle could serve as a valuable guide for future research and policy making.
While Canada's CMP utilizes a more traditional interpretation of the
precautionary principle, the European Union's REACH employs a form of reverse onus.
The
precautionary principle is one of the central concepts of modern environmental policy.
