Long established principles ensure the rights of all people to life, health and family and a right to a clean environment that is the foundation for those rights. But in practice, industry has repeatedly violated those rights in the 20 th century. A common set of patterns underlies many of industry's human rights violations. Often the industry's most extensive damage is inflicted on populations with apparent endorsement of government, justified as "acceptable risk". But endorsement by government does not eliminate the fact of a human rights abuse.