Reflections And Recommendations

There is a great deal of controversy about how to deal with man-made chemicals. Environmentalists and industrialists throughout the world clash on such subjects as chlorine, PVC, endocrine disrupters and the precautionary principle. In this book Tukker untangles the controversy. Three chapters relate to long-term evaluations into two hot-spots in the toxicity controversy -- the debates on chlorine in the Netherlands and PVC in Sweden. The book adopts a political-philosophical view, presenting a thorough theoretical analysis of the potential of scientific research to solve controversies, and evaluating the history of the chlorine and PVC controversies. The book combines the quantitative analytical approaches of environmental science with qualitative approaches of policy sciences and the philosophy of science (frame analysis, cultural theory, discourse theory, etc.). It is an accessible analysis of the toxicity debate that will enable scientists, policy makers and others to place their roles in a much wider context within the decision-making process.