Environment committee  Madam Chair, I agree with Professor Diamond that we're at a paradigm shift—I think she used those words—and I would call it an inflection point in terms of—

Environment committee  We're at an inflection point in terms of our ability to use new approaches that are enabled by high throughput screening, by computational toxicology, and by a better understanding of mode of action and how chemicals can trigger the same sequence of events within a body to result

Environment committee  I'm afraid we don't really deal with the NPRI in my group, so I can't answer that question.

Environment committee  There is a substantial transmission of information down the line. It's not complete, but it does happen through material safety data sheets. There are transmissions of information down the line to major customers, which many major suppliers engage in. Also, in the new substance

Environment committee  There is certainly a lot of effort in that area, absolutely. There is a great deal of effort being expended in that area.

Environment committee  I've been very clear that we support a risk-based approach and that any assessment of alternatives should occur within such an approach. That tends to happen as a matter of design. It doesn't happen every time, but when it's important enough, it happens within the risk- managemen

Environment committee  There are so many ifs in that statement that I'm not sure how to answer it. If you apply a risk-based approach, you can consider both hazard and exposure. Applying a risk-based approach does not mean you cannot consider hazard. You can.

Environment committee  It's a matter of the weight you assign to it.

Environment committee  Madam Chair, I am saying that the way in which we should be applying precaution, because it is such a values-based concept, is something that needs to be very firmly grounded in how other people also see precaution and apply it. So I am saying that—

Environment committee  So I am saying—

Environment committee  Please continue.

Environment committee  Madam Chair, in a large program like the CMP, you have to set priorities. So I have two parts to my answer. One is that, in principle, the answer is yes; meaningful new information should be considered. The second part of my answer is that you have to do that in a priority-driven

Environment committee  It's called the CEPA Update Conference. It's something we hold every 18 months.

Environment committee  It's an industry conference, yes.

Environment committee  On the precautionary approach, I think it's a question of interpretation, and the interpretation that is most broadly held in the world is one that was developed during the Rio environment meetings in 1992. That is the interpretation that, I think, underlies much of the governmen