Safety Principles ALARP Debate (PPT)

摘要

Since its emergence as the regulator's interpretation of the risk tolerability principle, derived from the Health and Safety at Work Act Etc., the ALARP principle has been subject to many challenges in adoption, application and elucidation. Over the past few decades, the principle has been adopted by many international safety standards and codes of practice, often in preference to its two other continental counterparts namely GAME & MEM. However, the application of this principle is often deliberately or unwittingly narrowly focused on cost and money being the sole criterion for reasonability of further risk reduction. Whilst logically sound in terms of its division of risk space and consideration of the need for a degree of reduction where risks are considered tolerable, the principle suffers from many often overlooked structural and philosophical dysfunctional characteristics. These pose a question on its long term viability as a legal framework fit for the emerging challenges. This debate will explore the various facets of this principle aiming to elucidate the strengths and deficiencies of ALARP as a legal instrument when faced by technological complexity and epistemic uncertainties inherent in many modern endeavours. The general qualities of a systemic legal framework for tolerability and demonstration of duty of care will be explored to illustrate the potential need for a new paradigm in the near future.