COMMON ACCESS Resources Pages 56 of handout Common

COMMON ACCESS Resources Pages 5/6 of handout

Common Access Resources/Goods Common access resources (goods) differ from other types of resources as they possess a special combination of characteristics: rivalrous: use by some people reduces the availability for others. (like private goods) non-excludable: not possible to exclude anyone from using it. There is no price and anyone can use them without payment (like public goods) https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=_Tc 6 ywqo. L 6 o

Examples • Many relate to the environment • Natural resources: fossil fuels, ocean, lakes, ozone layer, forest, rain forests, biodiversity, arable land for agriculture • Wild and marine life: cows, fish, clams, etc • Case of Black Tuna; Dodo Birds consuming faster than its reproduction (extinction) • In all cases, common access resources become a critical issue as they are used and consumed without payment at a pace that is faster than the cycle of life/reproduction, leading to serious environmental degradation, depletion, and possibly extinction • Moreover, tremendous negative consequences/ externalities to society and environment: extinct and endangered species, soil erosion (desertification), salinization, global warming and climate

Graphical Analysis • Overuse of common access resources from industrial production and high income consumption activities based on fossil fuels external costs (depletion or extinction of wild life, ozone layer, air, etc). e. g consequences of global warming • The economic and welfare analysis is the – Negative production externalities case OR – Negative consumption externalities case

Common Access Resources and Sustainability • Sustainability refers to the ability of something to be maintained or preserved over time (so that future generations can also use it). • The problem of sustainability arises because of conflicts between environmental and economic goals – Economic goals involve efforts to maximize the unlimited wants based on scarce resources (it involves an increase in the quantities of output produced and consumed) – Environmental goals involve the preservation of the environment • Recent case of Bluefin tuna – http: //www. businessinsider. com/afp-sashimi-trend-helps-edge-pacific-bluefintuna-towards-extinction-2014 -11

Sustainable Development… can it be achieved? • Overuse of environmental resources in the developing economies can be an important cause of environmental destruction • Examples – Lack of modern agricultural inputs and technology to preserve the soil’s fertility, depleting minerals in soil, thus making it unproductive in the future (desertification/degredation) – Cutting down forests and trees to find more room for agriculture (together with the rising population), – Lack of clean water, irrigation systems, and sanitation – Immense waste disposal impacts the environment – all risk the reproduction and sustainability of the environment

• Asymmetric/Imperfect information • Pages 5/6/7/8 of handout