4. The precautionary principle and society

Crisis of confidence

The challenges posed by collective risk situations cannot be met by the sophistication of scientific and economic expertise alone. For a number of reasons, not least the shockwaves of the recent mad cow and contaminated blood scandals, not to mention the opacity of government decisions in the face of "Chernobyl", we are experiencing a crisis of public confidence in public institutions and the holders of knowledge who are in a position to make authoritative use of it.

It's no longer enough for experts to claim that there's no danger for them to be believed