The Precautionary Principle Practical Applications for Real Organizations

The Precautionary Principle: Practical Applications for Real Organizations Dana E. Cooley, President Sea. State Group, Inc. © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc.

Decisionmaking Wait for Proof of Harm Be Precautionary Drugs Tobacco Toys Asbestos Dioxin Tires Lead (paint and gasoline) Accounting scandals Handguns Stone dust (silicosis) (Poly)vinyl chloride Nuclear Power Fluorocarbons Terrorism Great Lakes Water Quality SARS(? ) © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 2

Quality Conformance to Specification Fitness for Use Drugs Tobacco Toys Asbestos Dioxin Tires Lead (paint and gasoline) Accounting scandals Handguns Stone dust (silicosis) (Poly)vinyl chloride Nuclear Power Fluorocarbons Terrorism Great Lakes Water Quality SARS(? ) © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 3

NRC Reactor Oversight Findings August 1, 2003 Data © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 4

Standards for Everything from. . . • Infant changing tables to vinyl chloride sampling. . . • Soil toxicity to apparel flammability. . . • Dust cloud ignition to hockey player face shields. . . • Chromate exposure to cigarette lighter safety. . . • Toy chests to slicing machines. . . • Emergency room triage to asbestos-cement. . . © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 5

Communicating Quality to Executive Management Integrating Quality with ESH Strategic Planning Quality of Information Precautionary Principle ISO 14000 at Urban Utility Legal Pitfalls Climate Change Ethics © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 6

Wingspread Statement • “When an activity raises threats of harm to the environment or human health, precautionary measures should be taken even if some cause and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically. ” - January 1998 © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 7

The Precautionary Principle in Action Root Cause Analysis © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 8

Precautionary Precausationary © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 9

© 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 10

Solving Problems • Identify possible threat. • List knowns and unknowns. • Reframe in “big picture” terms. • Assess alternatives • Choose course of action. • Monitor and follow up. © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 11

All It Takes. . . • “Transparency” of information. • Inclusion of stakeholders. • Willingness to act in the face of uncertainty. • Accountability © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 12

Bosun © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 13

Which dog “caused” Bosun? © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 14

Growth - Good and Bad © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 15

Your Next Decision: Make It Precautionary • Identify possible threat. • List knowns and unknowns. • Reframe in “big picture” terms. • Assess alternatives • Choose course of action. • Monitor and follow up. • “Transparent” information. • Stakeholder inclusion. • Courage to act in the face of uncertainty. • Accountability © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 16

Sea. State Group, Inc. Intensive Self-Assessment Fundamental Improvement 144 Dante’s Drive Hockessin, DE 19707 Office - (302) 234 -8188 E-mail - seastate@verizon. net Website - www. fix-it-once. com © 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 17

© 2003 Sea. State Group, Inc. 18