<p>This thesis aims at providing reasonable explications of theprecautionary principle and the concept of precaution, todefend the precautionary principle against some commoncriticisms, and to give an indication of how the precautionaryprinciple might be operationalised.</p><p>In Essay I, the concept of precaution is analysed in termsof precautionary actions. Distinctions between precaution andtwo related concepts, prevention and pessimism, are discussed.A definition involving three necessary and jointly sufficientconditions is proposed as a reasonable explication of aprecautionary action.</p><p>Essay II attempts to provide an analytical apparatus whichmay be used for finding an authoritative formulation of theprecautionary principle. Several formulations of theprecautionary principle are examined. It is argued that theprecautionary principle can be recast into a four-dimensionalif-clause, and that this format can be used in negotiationsconcerning the precautionary principle.</p><p>In Essay III, the precautionary principle is defendedagainst five common charges, namely that it is ill-defined,absolutist, and a value judgement, increases risk-taking, andmarginalises science.</p><p>In Essay IV, a simple formalised model is introduced, inwhich the precautionary principle is interpreted in terms ofdefault values of chemicals regulation.</p><p><b>Key words:</b>Precautionary principle, precaution, risk</p>

Thesis (doctoral)--Universitas Tartuensis, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 262-287).

This thesis aims at providing reasonable explications of theprecautionary principle and the concept of precaution, todefend the precautionary principle against some commoncriticisms, and to give an indication of how the precautionaryprinciple might be operationalised. In Essay I, the concept of precaution is analysed in termsof precautionary actions. Distinctions between precaution andtwo related concepts, prevention and pessimism, are discussed.A definition involving three necessary and jointly sufficientconditions is proposed as a reasonable explication of aprecautionary action. Essay II attempts to provide an analytical apparatus whichmay be used for finding an authoritative formulation of theprecautionary principle. Several formulations of theprecautionary principle are examined. It is argued that theprecautionary principle can be recast into a four-dimensionalif-clause, and that this format can be used in negotiationsconcerning the precautionary principle. In Essay III, the precautionary principle is defendedagainst five common charges, namely that it is ill-defined,absolutist, and a value judgement, increases risk-taking, andmarginalises science. In Essay IV, a simple formalised model is introduced, inwhich the precautionary principle is interpreted in terms ofdefault values of chemicals regulation. <b>Key words:</b>Precautionary principle, precaution, risk / NR 20140805

As variantes evolutivas da sociedade, especialmente a pós-moderna, com sua inerente complexidade e riscos, provocam a releitura das funções e estrutura da responsabilidade civil. À referida figura jurídica tanto pela observação ontológica (ser) como deontológica (dever-ser) cumpre tantos modelos quanto forem necessários à revitalização da vítima e avançando além do escopo reparatório à inerente preservação da pessoa humana considerada em suas dimensões individual e coletiva, em órbita de intangibilidade essencial (segurança), pois há danos de intensidade irreparável. O escopo da presente tese é justamente investigar a fragmentação da responsabilidade civil conforme as vicissitudes contemporâneas, imprimindo, para além do silogismo dedutivo-estruturalista, telos argumentativo-funcional, mediante as operações hermenêuticas possíveis proporcionadas pelos Princípios da Precaução e Prevenção, o que permite anunciar o modelo de Responsabilidade Civil Preventiva / The constant evolution of society, especially the postmodern, with its inherent complexity and risk, promotes a new reading of functions and structure of liability. To this legal figure, both by ontological as deontological observation, meets any models as necessary for the revitalization of the victim and - moving beyond the scope of reparation the inherent preservation of the essential intangibility (safety) of the human beings, considered in their individual and collective dimensions, because there are intense and irreparable damages. The scope of this thesis is precisely to investigate the civil liability fragmentation under the contemporary dynamic social changes, bringing, beyond the reasoning deductivestructuralist, meaning argumentative-functional, through the hermeneutical provided by the Precautionary Principle and Prevention, which allows to announce the Preventive Liability model .

As variantes evolutivas da sociedade, especialmente a pós-moderna, com sua inerente complexidade e riscos, provocam a releitura das funções e estrutura da responsabilidade civil. À referida figura jurídica tanto pela observação ontológica (ser) como deontológica (dever-ser) cumpre tantos modelos quanto forem necessários à revitalização da vítima e avançando além do escopo reparatório à inerente preservação da pessoa humana considerada em suas dimensões individual e coletiva, em órbita de intangibilidade essencial (segurança), pois há danos de intensidade irreparável. O escopo da presente tese é justamente investigar a fragmentação da responsabilidade civil conforme as vicissitudes contemporâneas, imprimindo, para além do silogismo dedutivo-estruturalista, telos argumentativo-funcional, mediante as operações hermenêuticas possíveis proporcionadas pelos Princípios da Precaução e Prevenção, o que permite anunciar o modelo de Responsabilidade Civil Preventiva / The constant evolution of society, especially the postmodern, with its inherent complexity and risk, promotes a new reading of functions and structure of liability. To this legal figure, both by ontological as deontological observation, meets any models as necessary for the revitalization of the victim and - moving beyond the scope of reparation the inherent preservation of the essential intangibility (safety) of the human beings, considered in their individual and collective dimensions, because there are intense and irreparable damages. The scope of this thesis is precisely to investigate the civil liability fragmentation under the contemporary dynamic social changes, bringing, beyond the reasoning deductivestructuralist, meaning argumentative-functional, through the hermeneutical provided by the Precautionary Principle and Prevention, which allows to announce the Preventive Liability model .

No

While the basic premise of precaution has been widely endorsed in environmental treaties since its inclusion in the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, as a legal principle, it has been framed in such vastly dissimilar ways that it continues to generate significant disagreement over its precise nature, standing and legal effect. Despite the rich and extensive scholarship aimed at clarifying its normative content and operation, the ongoing lack of consensus on when the precautionary principle is applicable and what its application entails points to fundamental definitional challenges as well as its overall limitations as a regulatory tool. This thesis attempts to move beyond this impasse by reassessing the precautionary principle in light of the distinction traditionally made in formal scientific discourse between risk and uncertainty. While this technical distinction is fundamental to defining the proper scope of the principle’s application, the thesis finds that much of the existing legal discourse has either overlooked or marginalised the risk/uncertainty dichotomy, which in turn has blurred the distinction between the principles of precaution and prevention. The thesis sets out what is meant by these analytically distinct concepts in the legal context, focusing on their implications for the processes of legal reasoning and regulatory decision-making. Having examined the conceptual underpinnings of the precautionary principle, and of the principle of prevention, the thesis proceeds to address a central research question – if uncertainty, as opposed to risk, determines the operational scope of the precautionary principle, to what extent do the current applications of the precautionary principle actually fall within its proper domain? To answer this, the thesis embarks on a deconstruction of the precautionary principle in practice by analysing how precaution has been deployed as an operational principle in particular treaty contexts. The treaty regimes examined here include: international fisheries; persistent organic pollutants; ocean dumping; sanitary and phytosanitary threats under the WTO; and atmospheric pollution and climate change. In each case, the thesis scrutinises the extent to which assumptions, obligations and measures contained therein are consistent with the theoretical underpinnings of precaution. Despite the pervasive use of the precautionary rhetoric in treaty texts and practice, the thesis ultimately finds that, for the most part, these instruments are in fact aimed at specific, scientifically-determined risks, and thus what is often upheld in the name of precaution is actually the prevention principle. The thesis argues that it is better to frame risk regulation through prevention, and not precaution, by considering the implications of abandoning the precautionary principle in those areas where the prevention principle is clearly at play. The thesis completes the analysis by addressing what is actually left for the precautionary principle and discussing some of the distinct ways in which precaution functions within its specific, circumscribed domain.

Abstract: Pharmaceuticals and their metabolites, collectively known as pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs), have been detected in surface water, groundwater, and drinking water, in a number of countries, since the mid-1990s. Pharmaceuticals can be used in human or veterinary medicine; human pharmaceuticals in the environment are the subject of this dissertation. Human pharmaceuticals enter the environment via wastewater treatment plants, after being consumed and excreted by humans, and through improper disposal, to toilets and garbage, among other routes of entry. Some PhACs have been found to have detrimental effects on aquatic organisms at low concentrations, such as the feminization of fish after exposure to low levels of 17-ethinylestradiol, the active ingredient in the birth control pill. Others are suspected of having effects on non-target species, but the impacts of long-term exposure to mixtures of PhACs generally remain poorly understood. Nevertheless, the precautionary principle suggests that management action to mitigate the environmental impacts of PhACs should be considered and possibly implemented. The purpose of this dissertation is to provide an analysis of precautionary management strategies to mitigate the environment impacts of human PhACs. Four underlying objectives are set. The first is to review the extant scientific understanding of human PhACs in the environment, so that this knowledge can be applied to the analysis of management strategies. The sources, transport, fate, and occurrence of PhACs are discussed, and several classes of PhACs of particular concern are highlighted. The effects of PhACs on humans and aquatic organisms are explored, in addition to the gaps in scientific understanding of PhACs in aquatic environments. Finally, a rough ranking of priority PhACs is conducted; the PhACs of greatest concern are found to be carbamazepine, clofibric acid, ifosfamid, 17a-ethinylestradiol, oxytetracycline, ciprofloxacin, and diclofenac. The second objective is to investigate how planning and management principles and theories can be applied to the problem of PhACs in the environment. The precautionary principle and the theory of adaptive planning are identified as essential tools in this regard. The application of the precautionary principle and adaptive planning to pharmaceuticals in the environment are discussed, and a management framework is developed. The third objective is to determine how human PhACs in the environment can be managed at a local scale, using a case study in the Region of Waterloo. Pharmaceuticals released from two wastewater treatment plans are found entering the local environment at concentrations similar to those in other cities internationally. Social surveys indicate that residents desire management action to prevent environmental contamination by pharmaceuticals, but at a limited cost. The surveys also indicate that many residents dispose of pharmaceuticals improperly; education to encourage proper drug disposal is therefore recommended as one of several management strategies. The other two recommended management strategies target the wastewater treatment plants. In Foxboro, where the wastewater treatment plant is functioning less than optimally, optimization without technological upgrades is suggested. In Kitchener, where the plant is functioning within ministerial guidelines, ozonation is suggested as a means of improving pharmaceutical removal without exceeding residents’ willingness to pay. The fourth and final objective is to assess how human pharmaceuticals can be managed at a broad scale, such as at the national scale. Stakeholder interviews are conducted with the purpose of gaining a deeper understanding of possible management strategies. A policy analysis is conducted to determine which combinations of management strategies are likely to optimally address the problem of PhACs in the environment, and some policy packages are recommended for implementation by governments – in particular, multiple levels of government in Canada. This dissertation is among the first research efforts to investigate the management of pharmaceuticals in the environment. Few efforts to date have combined natural scientific research, social scientific research, and an understanding of planning and management theories, to explore policy and management options for this issue. It is hoped that this research will provide assistance to various governments grappling with pharmaceuticals in the environment. Furthermore, the research provides insight into how environmental problems surrounded by high levels of scientific uncertainty can be managed. The framework for precautionary decision making developed in this study can provide guidance to planners, managers and policy makers faced with the problem of uncertain environmental risk.

Abstract: Pharmaceuticals and their metabolites, collectively known as pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs), have been detected in surface water, groundwater, and drinking water, in a number of countries, since the mid-1990s. Pharmaceuticals can be used in human or veterinary medicine; human pharmaceuticals in the environment are the subject of this dissertation. Human pharmaceuticals enter the environment via wastewater treatment plants, after being consumed and excreted by humans, and through improper disposal, to toilets and garbage, among other routes of entry. Some PhACs have been found to have detrimental effects on aquatic organisms at low concentrations, such as the feminization of fish after exposure to low levels of 17-ethinylestradiol, the active ingredient in the birth control pill. Others are suspected of having effects on non-target species, but the impacts of long-term exposure to mixtures of PhACs generally remain poorly understood. Nevertheless, the precautionary principle suggests that management action to mitigate the environmental impacts of PhACs should be considered and possibly implemented. The purpose of this dissertation is to provide an analysis of precautionary management strategies to mitigate the environment impacts of human PhACs. Four underlying objectives are set. The first is to review the extant scientific understanding of human PhACs in the environment, so that this knowledge can be applied to the analysis of management strategies. The sources, transport, fate, and occurrence of PhACs are discussed, and several classes of PhACs of particular concern are highlighted. The effects of PhACs on humans and aquatic organisms are explored, in addition to the gaps in scientific understanding of PhACs in aquatic environments. Finally, a rough ranking of priority PhACs is conducted; the PhACs of greatest concern are found to be carbamazepine, clofibric acid, ifosfamid, 17a-ethinylestradiol, oxytetracycline, ciprofloxacin, and diclofenac. The second objective is to investigate how planning and management principles and theories can be applied to the problem of PhACs in the environment. The precautionary principle and the theory of adaptive planning are identified as essential tools in this regard. The application of the precautionary principle and adaptive planning to pharmaceuticals in the environment are discussed, and a management framework is developed. The third objective is to determine how human PhACs in the environment can be managed at a local scale, using a case study in the Region of Waterloo. Pharmaceuticals released from two wastewater treatment plans are found entering the local environment at concentrations similar to those in other cities internationally. Social surveys indicate that residents desire management action to prevent environmental contamination by pharmaceuticals, but at a limited cost. The surveys also indicate that many residents dispose of pharmaceuticals improperly; education to encourage proper drug disposal is therefore recommended as one of several management strategies. The other two recommended management strategies target the wastewater treatment plants. In Foxboro, where the wastewater treatment plant is functioning less than optimally, optimization without technological upgrades is suggested. In Kitchener, where the plant is functioning within ministerial guidelines, ozonation is suggested as a means of improving pharmaceutical removal without exceeding residents’ willingness to pay. The fourth and final objective is to assess how human pharmaceuticals can be managed at a broad scale, such as at the national scale. Stakeholder interviews are conducted with the purpose of gaining a deeper understanding of possible management strategies. A policy analysis is conducted to determine which combinations of management strategies are likely to optimally address the problem of PhACs in the environment, and some policy packages are recommended for implementation by governments – in particular, multiple levels of government in Canada. This dissertation is among the first research efforts to investigate the management of pharmaceuticals in the environment. Few efforts to date have combined natural scientific research, social scientific research, and an understanding of planning and management theories, to explore policy and management options for this issue. It is hoped that this research will provide assistance to various governments grappling with pharmaceuticals in the environment. Furthermore, the research provides insight into how environmental problems surrounded by high levels of scientific uncertainty can be managed. The framework for precautionary decision making developed in this study can provide guidance to planners, managers and policy makers faced with the problem of uncertain environmental risk.

This thesis is concerned with promoting better environmental protection through the application of the precautionary principle in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The last four decades have brought a new awareness of the environmental risks of upstream oil and gas exploration and production in the Nigerian Niger Delta region. The enviro'nmental risks can be classified into certain (identified) and uncertain environmentaI risks. Uncertainties "associated with oil and gas pollution are manifested "in uncertainty as to probability of occurrence and uncertainty as to the magnitude of the environmental risk. For instance, there exist uncertainties as to impact of atmospheric emissions, uncertainty as to the full impact on biodiversity, uncertainty as to the impact on marine environment. The realisation that there are uncertain environmental risks in the oil and gas industry which cannot be completely ignored without consequence ne~essitated this research. In view of the uncertainties surrounding oil and gas environmental risks, this thesis argues that the best approach to deal with these uncertainties is through the adoption and application of the precautionary principle in the Nigerian oil and gas environmental regulatory framework. Through a comparative analysis of the UK and the Nigerian upstream oil and gas environmental laws the thesis shows that the precautionary principle has not been incorporated into the Nigerian laws. The research shows that the UK's upstream oil and gas environmental laws are more disposed to the application of the precautionary principle in the face of uncertainties than the Nigeria laws. The research recommends different ways through which the precautionary principle can be integrated into the Nigerian upstream oil and gas environmental legal framework. The recommendations made in this research do not arise solely from the positive sides of the UK experience. Measures that will promote the application of the precautionary principle which have not been implemented in the UK but are deemed to be beneficial to Nigeria are also recommended.