Common Pool Theory
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The document discusses the tragedy of the commons theory, which argues that individuals acting in their own self-interest will ultimately deplete a shared limited resource even if it is detrimental to the common good. It provides the example of herders sharing a common parcel of land, where each will keep adding more cows for personal benefit despite overgrazing the land. Modern examples of tragedies include overuse of public resources like air, water and forests. Managing common pool resources requires political solutions like regulations to prevent overexploitation and ensure long-term sustainability.
Common Pool Theory
- 1. Garrett Hardin (1968) Professor of Biology University of California, Santa Barbara The Tragedy of the Commons
- 2. Definition and Conceptual Root The tragedy of the commons (also Common Pool Theory- CPT) is a class of phenomena that involve a conflict for resources between individual interests and the common good . The term derives originally from a parable published by William Forster Lloyd in his 1833 book on population
- 3. Core Argument of CPT The parable demonstrates how free access and unrestricted demand for a finite resource ultimately dooms the resource through over-exploitation. This occurs because the benefits of exploitation accrue to individuals , each of which is motivated to maximise his or her own use of the resource, while the costs of exploitation are distributed between all those to whom the resource is available (which may be more individuals than the exploiters).
- 4. Points to Note About CPT The Tragedy is a metaphor for what Alfred N. Whitehead called "the remorseless working of things.” Hardin’s aim was to draw attention to problems that cannot be solved by technical means, (need change in human values or ideas of morality. He focused on population growth vs. life-support systems (a critical issue today)
- 5. Paradigm Example of CPT Imagine the use by individuals of communally owned land for the grazing of cows owned privately by those individuals. The utility to each individual of adding a single cow to his own herd is, more or less, the value of that cow; the cost to the individual is the consumption of the resources of that cow divided by the number of communal owners of the common . That is, the benefit to an individual of "hogging" a resource inevitably outweighs the cost where communal resources are concerned.
- 6. Paradigm Example (cont’d) 3. All economically rational herdsman in the community will add as many cows as they can to their own herds and as quickly as they can (before other herdsmen do), meaning that the finite resources of the communal land will quickly become exhausted. "Therein is the tragedy. Each man is locked into a system that compels him to increase his herd without limit—in a world that is limited. Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.
- 7. Modern Commons and Tragedies Planet Earth - Uncontrolled human population growth, leading to overpopulation 2. Air - Air pollution 3. Water – Water pollution and water wastage due to over-use 4. Soil – Soil contamination 5. Public spaces and lands – Littering, crime, graffiti 6. Roads – Traffic congestion, accidents and medical/insurance
- 8. Modern Commons and Tragedies 6. Energy resources and climate - Burning of fossil fuels and consequential global warming 7. Fauna Species – Poaching, extinction 8. Forests - Frontier logging of old growth forest and slash and burn 9. Public lands – Overgrazing, overbuilding 10. Oceans – Overfishing, reclamation, pollution 11. Flora Life - Reduced biodiversity
- 9. A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES John Baden wrote
- 10. introduction What is “Common Pool Resources” a natural or human-made resource system, whose size or characteristics of which makes it costly, but not impossible, to exclude potential beneficiaries from obtaining benefits from its use typically consists of a core resource, which defines the stock variable, while providing a limited quantity of extractable fringe units, which defines the flow variable To keep the resource available for future generations the core resources are preserved A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 11. Common Pool Resources- Public Goods Types of Common Pool Resources irrigation systems, fishing grounds, pastures, and forests A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 12. Problems generally subject to the problems of congestion, overuse, pollution, and potential destruction unless harvesting or use limits are devised and enforced. Example: Overuse of fisheries can tax the resource and cause the resource to become depleted A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 13. Who are the actors and what are their roles/responsibilities? Government actors Corporate sector actors Non-governmental/non-profit actors Grassroots/citizen actors (Examples of roles: Regulation, advocacy, enlightenment, mobilization, coordination, enforcement, arbitration, collaboration, etc.)
- 14. Global Common-Pool Regime The Kyoto Protocol An amendment to the United Nations Opened for signature December 11, 1997 in Kyoto, Japan Aims to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, gases which are perceived by environmentalists to disrupt the perceived common-pool resource of a moderate global climate without climate change. A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 15. Issues in Managing Common Pool Assets Why Recourse to Political Organization ? Public Goods or Public Bads Private Solutions The Free Rider Problem Potential for B ureaucratic Performance The Political Economy of Bureaucracies Decision-Making or Bargaining Costs The Potential for Bureaucratic Performance in a common Pool Situation A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 16. Political Recourse Why Recourse to Political Organization ? Public Goods or Public Bads Private Solutions The Free Rider Problem A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 17. Why Recourse to Political Organization ? A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 18. people ignore social impact of private behavior private behavior always affects the community, for good or for bad A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 19. government involves coercion rather than willing consent even the few surviving classical anarchists acknowledge the necessity for occasionally relaxing the rule of willing consent. A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 20. government is needed to serve as an arbiter among parties to protect the weak, to prevent market forces, to enforce property rights and maintain a context of law and order A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 21. Public GOODS or Public BADS ? A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 22. a public good is one which, if available for ANYone , is available for EVERYone A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 23. a similar definition applies for a PUBLIC BAD A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES if not available for ANYone , it’s not available for NO one
- 24. If there is no incentive for the public to contribute , there will be no public contribution. A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES rule
- 25. A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES the government will just TAX If there is no public contribution…
- 26. exception #1 social pressure can induce contribution for public goods the grass is always greener on the other side A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 27. exception #2 if private benefit from providing a public good is greater than its private cost then the good will be provided privately for example when a company maintains a public road A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 28. a common pool resource is a resource for which there are multiple owners A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 29. common pool resource where one, or a set of users, can have adverse effects upon the interests of other users A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES If there is no agency with the power to manage, it can be collectively disastrous
- 30. The damage done by the smelters is greater than the cost of cleaning the AIR A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES humans are also users of the AIR resource, as the smelters
- 31. the self- incentive to maximize sales might make resources unsustainable limits and regulations are needed A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 32. Unnecessary depletion of resources Imagine if all the timber were suddenly put up for grabs… A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 33. private SOLUTIONS A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 34. establishing AGENCIES assigning them responsibilities and power A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 35. the free-rider problem A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 36. in general, the world is taking on an ever-greater resemblance to a common pool A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES oma
- 38. What do we do? Decision-Making or Bargaining Costs The Potential for Bureaucratic Performance in a common Pool Situation A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 39. Decision making or bargaining costs Necessary to come to mutual voluntary agreements for use of common pool resources Incentive to reach agreements because marginal costs are low Two main sets of costs involved Actual cost Cost of construction or extraction of resources Opportunity costs Costs associated with time spent on finance issues A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 40. Potential for Bureaucratic Performance in a Common Pool Situation Cost Benefit Analysis of Wildlife management With no common pool management the result will be a loss of the core resources If resource is managed then less net loss will accrue Possibility for management by bureaucracy to retain resources MSB: (Marginal Social Benefit) MSC (Marginal Social Cost) A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 41. Action Potential for B ureaucratic Performance The Political Economy of Bureaucracies A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES
- 42. conclusion Common Pool Resources and Sustainability Need to manage common pool resources to help achieve sustainability E.g., Overgrazing, Over-fishing, Deforestation, etc. Bureaucratic (Government) management Dependent on the city (political will) and funding Capabilities of citizens to take action Public (Community) Management Dependent on the knowledge, skills and experience of community activists. Q. Which method is best for the management of Common Pool Resources? A Primer for the Management of COMMON POOL RESOURCES