Social Philosophy Today 31:99-109 (2015)
Authors |
|
Abstract |
The Precautionary Principle is frequently invoked as a guiding principle in environmental policy. In this article, I raise a couple of problems for the application of the Precautionary Principle when it comes to policies concerning Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). First, I argue that if we accept Stephen Gardiner’s sensible conditions under which it is appropriate to employ the Precautionary Principle for emerging technologies, it is unclear that GMOs meet those conditions. In particular, I contend that GM crops hold the potential to provide more than a mere bonus; they hold the (admittedly uncertain) potential to prevent serious harm to millions of people. This means that, if proponents of the Precautionary Principle take prevention of harm as seriously as avoidance of harm, then precaution may tell in favor of GMOs rather than against them. Second, I observe that the use of GM technology in the developing world is likely to be identity-affecting; it will cause people to exist who otherwise would not have. I argue that this undermines Precautionary Principle-based objections to GM technology that appeal to the potentially harmful effects of GMOs on future generations.
|
Keywords | Precautionary Principle Genetically Modified Organisms Future Generations |
Categories | (categorize this paper) |
DOI | 10.5840/socphiltoday201571421 |
Options |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Download options
References found in this work BETA
No references found.
Citations of this work BETA
No citations found.
Similar books and articles
Future Technologies, Dystopic Futures and the Precautionary Principle.Steve Clarke - 2005 - Ethics and Information Technology 7 (3):121-126.
From 'The' Precautionary Principle to Precautionary Principles.Lauren Hartzell-Nichols - 2013 - Ethics, Policy and Environment 16 (3):308-320.
How Not to Criticize the Precautionary Principle.Jonathan Hughes - 2006 - Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 31 (5):447 – 464.
A Precautionary Approach to Genetically Modified Organisms: Challenges and Implications for Policy and Science. [REVIEW]Anne Ingeborg Myhr - 2010 - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 23 (6):501-525.
Formulating the Precautionary Principle.Neil A. Manson - 2002 - Environmental Ethics 24 (3):263-274.
The Epistemology of the Precautionary Principle: Two Puzzles Resolved.Asbjørn Steglich-Petersen - 2015 - Erkenntnis 80 (5):1013-1021.
Wrongful Harm to Future Generations: The Case of Climate Change.Marc D. Davidson - 2008 - Environmental Values 17 (4):471 - 488.
The Normative Challenges of the Precautionary Principle.Rene von Schomberg - 2006 - In Elizabeth Fisher & Rene von Schomberg (eds.), Implementing the Precautionary Principle: Perspectives and Prospects. Edward Elgar. pp. 19-42.
Pushing the Limit: Theology and Responsibility to Future Generations.Rachel Muers - 2003 - Studies in Christian Ethics 16 (2):36-51.
Should the Precautionary Principle Guide Our Actions or Our Beliefs?M. Peterson - 2007 - Journal of Medical Ethics 33 (1):5-10.
Protecting Future Generations: Intergenerational Buck-Passing, Theoretical Ineptitude and a Brief for a Global Core Precautionary Principle.Stephan M. Gardiner - 2006 - In Tremmel J. (ed.), The Handbook of Intergenerational Justice. Edward Elgar. pp. 148--169.
Derek Parfit and Obligations to Future Generations.Margaret Mckenna Houck - 1988 - Dissertation, Georgetown University
A Core Precautionary Principle.Stephen M. Gardiner - 2006 - Journal of Political Philosophy 14 (1):33–60.
The Lack of Clarity in the Precautionary Principle.Derek Turner & Lauren Hartzell - 2004 - Environmental Values 13 (4):449 - 460.
Analytics
Added to PP index
2015-07-16
Total views
87 ( #133,749 of 2,505,228 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
1 ( #416,705 of 2,505,228 )
2015-07-16
Total views
87 ( #133,749 of 2,505,228 )
Recent downloads (6 months)
1 ( #416,705 of 2,505,228 )
How can I increase my downloads?
Downloads