Precautionary Principle

Seattle Precautionary Principle Initiative (07/26/05)

Learn More about the Precautionary Principle

Seattle Precuationary Principle - White Paper
A Policy Framework for Adopting the Precautionary Principle
Submitted by the Seattle Precautionary Principle Working Group to the City of Seattle and King County for consideration as an amendment to the 2004 City and County comprehensive plans - January 2004

----Setttle City Comp Plan includes the PP - Envirionment Element

CHE-WA Seattle Efforts

The Collaborative on Health and the Environment – Washington (CHE-WA), a regional project of national CHE, is a network of over 270 researchers, health-affected groups, health care practitioners, environmental health and justice advocates, and other concerned citizens committed to reducing environmental contaminants for a healthier future. Currently, CHE-WA has three major work groups: 1) Precautionary Principle; 2) Information and Research; and 3) Environmental Justice.

CHE-WA began as CHE-Northwest, a regional offshoot of CHE National. With our Oregonian colleagues starting their own state CHE in February 2005 (CHE-OR), CHE-NW became CHE-WA. CHE-WA and CHE-OR will be working closely together. An umbrella CHE-NW website with sections for each of the state sites is being developed to facilitate information sharing and collaboration on regional issues.

History of the Seattle PP working group

In the Fall of 2003, a subcommittee of CHE-NW, the Seattle Precautionary Principle Working Group, was established to foster awareness about the precautionary principle and discern how the principle might be incorporated into the comprehensive plans of both King County and the City of Seattle. In January 2004, the Working Group submitted applications to the County and City. In addition, the Working Group developed a white paper on the precautionary principle to serve as background material for the proposed amendments. Click to read the White Paper and the application letters to the City of Seattle and King County. In the coming months, the County and City will review the suggested language on the precautionary principle and hold public hearings.

As part of this process, we would like to invite your organization, institution and/or department to endorse the Seattle Precautionary Principle Working Group's recommendation that the precautionary principle be included as an amendment to the comprehensive plans of the City of Seattle and King County. The public hearings on the City of Seattle's comprehensive plan will begin in April. We would like as many endorsements as possible by March 1st to prepare for those.

Please contact Elise Miller (emiller@iceh.org) or Steve Gilbert (sgilbert@innd.org) if you have any questions about this effort and whether you think your organization would be interested in signing on. Also let us know whether you will need to go through a more formal board process in order to make a decision and if you would like a representative of the Seattle Precautionary Principle Working Group to talk to your board as part of that process.

We believe that incorporating the precautionary principle as a fundamental value statement to guide decision-making at the County and City levels is an essential step towards towards creating a healthier, more sustainable Northwest for all. Thank you for your interest and consideration.

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Click here to read more about the ethics of the precautionary principle.