Common Pool Resources
A. Theoretical and Historical Perspectives on Common Pool Resources
Feb 4 (Th) Theorizing the Tragedy of the Commons
- Define "common pool resources," highlighting their two intrinsic characteristics. Describe two examples.
- Describe the Tragedy of the Commons through the pasture example, clarifying why individual rational actions are not to the benefit of society, why it is a “free rider problem,” and why it becomes a “tragedy”
- Describe the Tragedy of the Commons through the prisoner's dilemma example, clarifying why individual actions are not to the benefit of society, why it is a “free rider problem,” and why it becomes a “tragedy”
- Define the four property rights regimes under which common pool resources may be managed
- Identify 2-3 reasons why state ownership is a good solution to the Tragedy, and 2-3 reasons why it is not
- Identify 2-3 reasons why private ownership is a good solution to the Tragedy, and 2-3 reasons why it is not
- Contrast how Hardin’s Tragedy Thesis and Smith's "invisible hand" judge individual behavior, and clarify the underlying assumptions that lead them to different conclusions
Feb 9 (Tu) Origins of the Tragedy in the U.S.
- Explain why the New World initially adopted “open access” (no ownership/laissez-faire) as its property/management regime for fisheries, etc.
- For each set of competing fishers in the Cod and Oyster industries, identify 1) the property/management regime desired and 2) a legal, socio-economic or environmental reason used by fishers to justify their desired property/management regime
- Explain what the two cases teach us about the impact of property/management regimes on different social groups
- Identify policies that structured access to federal land in the late 1800’s and describe how cattle ranchers carved out ownership/control of the Western landscape within this structure
- Describe 2-3 aspects of the Ranchers Code that refute the assumption that U.S. rangelands were entirely ‘open access’ in the late 1800’s
- Explain why a Tragedy occurred in the late 1880’s, and describe the ensuing debate that occurred between small and large ranchers over the desired property/management regime
B. Regulatory and Market-based Management Approaches
Feb 11 (Th) Cowboy Capitalism or Welfare Ranching?
- From the history of regulating rangelands, identify 1-2 key policies associated with the 1934 Taylor Grazing Act, Multiple Use Act, NEPA/ESA, NRDC-vs-Morton Court Case and the FLPMA, clarifying how each layer of regulation reduces rancher power
- Describe three problems demonstrating these efforts at state management failed
- Describe CATO's critique of state managed rangelands as a whole, referring to 3 state policies and at least 1 state subsidy that produce bad results
- Describe Babbit's approach to Range Reform, explaining at least 2 specific policies and their intended impacts
- Describe CATO's approach to Reform, referring to at least 3 specific policies (one of which should be a market mechanism) and their intended impacts
- Clarify key differences between Babbit's and CATO's approach to grazing fees, and explain why CATO thinks its approach is better
- Clarify key differences between Babbit's advisory councils and CATO's councils, and explain why CATO thinks its approach is better
- Describe 2-3 concerns that the public may have with CATO's approach, and explain why the Bush administration backed down from developing a "buyout" policy
- Identify where the Taylor Grazing Act, NEPA-FLPMA, Range Reform and the Cato Policies lie on an ownership/control spectrum
Feb 16 (Tu) Bioeconomics: Fisheries Problem from an Econ. Perspective
- Describe the three main initiatives of the FCMA, the context in which it was created
- Provide 2 examples of cost cutting and revenue ensuring subsidies common in the industry
- Clarify why governments enact and retain subsidies, even in the face of overfishing
- Describe 2 examples of how perspectives on the situation changed in the 1980’s and 90’s and identify 2 ways in which the FCMA was consequently altered
- Draw the natural growth curve for a fishery population, labeling the axes correctly. Identify and explain its three critical features: the concave curvature (left and right side of curve's peak), the curve's peak, and the natural equilibrium point
- Draw the steady state equilibrium model, labeling the axes correctly. Explain why, at a given level of effort, a fishery will eventually reach a sustainable level of harvest. Identify this sustainable level on the steady state equilibrium model, and identify what the fish population size will be.
- Draw the sustainable yield curve, labeling the axes correctly. Explain the three critical pieces of information being shown at each point along the curve, and explain what it means to be at the peak
- Draw the total revenue / cost curve, labeling the axes correctly. Explain its two critical features: the revenue curve and the cost curve.
- Illustrate and explain the results (stock and yield) of three management regimes on the revenue / cost curve: open access, maximum profit, and maximum yield/revenue, clarifying WHY an open access necessarily leads to its result.
- Explain why each of these three management goals might be desirable or undesirable
Feb 18 and 23/25 Regulatory-based Management: Input vs Output Controls and Market-based Management ITQs
- Explain the rational behind input controls – why they “should” work to end the Tragedy
- Explain the rational behind output controls – why they “should” work to end the Tragedy
- Identify which policy instruments (of the 5 discussed in class, (e.g., limited entry licensing)) face allocation and concentration issues and which do not
- Illustrate two different approaches to allocation, drawing from a case study and/or your own ideas. For each, explain their different impacts on social justice issues
- Argue both for and against limiting concentration, referring to issues of both economic efficiency and social justice. Illustrate/advocate for two different approaches to doing so, drawing from a case study and/or your own ideas.
- Illustrate two different approaches to monitoring ITQs, and argue which you feel is most effective
- Explain why input controls often fail to meet conservation goals – referring to ‘effort’ and input substitution
- Explain the conditions in which output controls fail to meet conservation goals
- Identify and describe three types of ‘economic efficiency’ by which economists evaluate the efficacy of a policy instrument. Identify one policy instrument that economists don’t like, explaining why, and one policy instrument that they do like, explaining why.
- Identify a policy instruments that is generally good at meeting broader social goals and explain why. Similarly, identify one that does poorly and explain why.