Chemicals, Cancer, and Choices: Risk Reduction Through Markets - Hardcover

Vandoren, Peter

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1882577787 ISBN 13: 9781882577781

Publisher: Cato Institute, 1999

Synopsis

This book offers readers a unique way to sort through the rhetoric that accompanies questions of science and health. Surprisingly, the answers are not to be found in more and better scientific research. Better studies can reduce - but not eliminate - our uncertainty about chemical side effects.
The market provides the sorting mechanism through which many of the conflicts may be reconciled. In the case of exposures that arise from the consumption of specific products, markets permit individuals to choose their level of exposure. Even when everyone is exposed to chemicals in the air, the creation of a market for emission rights would allow the cautious to purchase such rights and reduce their exposure. Emission rights also would allow firms to increase their pollution in return for compensating everyone else for increased risk. In short, the market affords individualized responses to chemical risk as an alternative to government-imposed rules for everyone.

About this title

About the Author

Peter VanDoren is editor of the Cato Institute's quarterly magazine on business and politics, Regulation.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cato Institute
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1882577787
• ISBN 13: 9781882577781
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 112