ABSTRACT
A good example of the precautionary doctrine in operation relates to the perceived safe levels of nitrate in drinking water. Concern about a possible link between nitrate levels and stomach cancers, as well as “blue baby” syndrome (infantile methaemoglobinaemia), led to the EEC formulating directives in the 1980s setting down strict limitations designed to control the problem. These precautionary measures will take some time to implement
and will involve very substantial costs in some regions, even though the harmful effects of nitrate levels twice those set down by the EU have not been confirmed by subsequent scientific research. Clearly, the issue of exactly how far the “precautionary principle” ought to be taken, and how far public policy should run ahead of clear scientific findings, cannot be resolved according to any authoritative technical formula (see O’Riordan & Cameron 1994).
