ON PRECAUTION, CLEAN PRODUCTION AND PARADIGM SHIFTS

Present environmental policy in the countries around the North East At lantic is in a state of transition; in part made up of old attitudes t hat assumed the environment to be largely capable of absorbing contami nation, in part a new precaution that recognises that we cannot fully predict the result of such actions. Precaution will prevail, and be im plemented by a form of pollution prevention, known as clean production , that emphasises the need to reduce and eliminate pollution at all st ages of the manufacturing cycle. There are three reasons why change is inevitable. First, toxicological problems, along with serious ecologi cal uncertainties, mean that we will be unable to predict 'safe' level s of marine contamination for the foreseeable future. Second, demonstr ation projects make it clear that clean production is now feasible and economically attractive, even in 'problem' industries. Third, the tar gets now being set for the reduction and elimination of potentially pr oblematic substances - for instance by the 1990 North Sea Conference a nd the 1992 Paris Convention Ministerial meeting - have developed to t he point where clean production provides the only feasible means of im plementation. This change has significant implications for the water t reatment industry.