THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE PROJECT

ONLINE CONSULTATION

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Re: Judicial Application of the pp.

From: Rob Cozens
Affiliation: Ocean Wildnerness Network
Remote Name: compression03.oak.mdsg-pacwest.com
Time: 18:32:53 +0100

Comments

"it is the judicial system or its structure that severly limits the functioning of the judiciary in taking into consideration livelihood impacts in the application of the precautionary principle." My understanding of precautionay principle [see my posts re: The Decision to Collect Additional Information"] lead me to see an antagonistic relationship between precautionary principle and socioeconomic impact. The heart of the definitions of precautionary principle I posted is the tenent "when decisions that impact both the population and the environment must be made in the absence of definitive scientific knowledge, alternatives that favor the environment must be given precedence." This does not mean decision makers have no responsibility to compensate people for the impacts of their decisions on people's lives & livelyhoods; but it does mean that precautionary approach requires giving the benefit of the doubt to nature instead of man in the absence of definitive science. The preceeding is a statement of my personal views, and may not necessarily represent the viewpoint of OWN's Executive Committee and/or constituant organizations.