FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2005

CONTACT:
Britt Bailey (707) 884-5002
Email: info@environmentalcommons.org

On Monday the General Government Committee of the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors began a 90-day study of the Precautionary Principle.

The Precautionary Principle is a guiding framework for decision-making that anticipates how actions will affect the environment and the health of future generations. In practice, the framework involves a thorough examination of alternatives available.

The meeting featured a presentation by Debbie Raphael, Toxics Reduction Manager for the City and County of San Francisco's Department of the Environment. In 2003, San Francisco became the first county in the United States to formally adopt the Precautionary Principle.

Ms. Raphael explained to the members of the General Government Committee, Kendall Smith (4th district supervisor) and David Colfax (5th district supervisor), county government officials, and interested citizens that the Precautionary Principle framework shifts the focus in decisions from "Is it legal?" and "Is it safe?" to "Is it necessary?"

To illustrate her point, Raphael stated that in applying the Precautionary Principle framework, San Francisco City and County has been able to reduce the use of glyphosate herbicide (Roundup) by 91% without banning it. In another case, they adopted an alternative to arsenic-laden pressure-treated wood in playground structures, while continuing its use in marine environments such as for piers, where the arsenic does not leach, and is therefore not a threat.

Ms. Raphael affirmed that San Francisco's adoption of the precautionary decision-making approach has not resulted in increased costs. Instead, for example in one case, they "have saved thousands of dollars and eliminated tons of waste by adopting rechargeable batteries."

Challenging Mendocino County to join San Francisco as "partner and teacher" in adopting the Precautionary Principle, Ms. Raphael suggested three reasons why Mendocino should adopt an ordinance:
1) The framework offers a decision-making process that is explicit about preventing harm, the right to know, and public participation.
2) It expands the pool of people asking "Is it necessary?" with respect to policies and practices.
3) It strengthens the foundation for precautionary measures that already exist in Mendocino County.

Dean Wolbach, Air Pollution Control Officer Mendocino Air Quality Management District, who attended the session along with other county department heads, stated, "If a Precautionary Principle ordinance were adopted for Mendocino County it would encourage us to make environmentally beneficial decisions for, say, purchasing and other types of routine decisions. And while it would not necessarily impact our regulatory decisions, it would set precedent for the District's consideration of better alternatives."

The County's study of the Precautionary Principle will continue in the next meeting of the General Government Committee on November 14. Information is available at mendoprecaution.org.