NS202-1: Tragedy of the Commons

Real Life Example of Tragedy of the Commons

Boston Commons was used as grazing ground in the 1600s.

Article: "Canola Oil Negatively Affects Brain and Weight Management"

Canola Oil became popular because it was seen as the vegetable oil with the least amount of saturated fat and it was cheaper. Apparently it was exactly the saturated fat that is needed for our brains to work well and because there was so little in the canola oil, this caused memory loss and may contribute to alzheimer's disease. Moreover, since Canola Oil isn't genetically engineered, it may contain more glyphosate, which is known to disrupt your gut.

Case Study (Precautionary Principle): Canola Oil Video

Canola oil video is made of grape seed and is bleached for color and chemically treated. It is proven to be bad for the brain since it increases memory loss.

Video on Garrett Hardin

Says that humans aren't attuned to things that aren't obvious and immediate. He has a careful choice of words.

Fishing Story

Start with a pond of 15 fish with 5 people catching fish from the pond. The fishermen don't know how many fish are in the pond and they can catch 1 to 3 fish per round. The problem is that most people will catch 3 fish and then there won't be enough fish to double.

The Precautionary Principle

When an activity increases the threat of harm to human health or the environment and precautionary measures are taken.

What is a common resource?

a shared resource in which any given user reaps the full benefit of his/her personal use, while the losses are distributed amongst all users. Result? Tragedy all around.It's a resource that is need by all whose productivity is diffuse, low yield and that tend to be communal. Overuse is tied to population density.

Article: "Effect of canola oil consumption on memory..."

- Canola oil consumption has increased since it's cheaper than olive oil. - An experiment on mice has been made where they feed them chow with and without canola oil for 6 months. - It was found that those mice with canola oil diets had an increase in body weight and decreases in memory.

Commons vs. Market

Commons: - Stewardship - Long term perspective Intergenerational equity -sustainability orientation -collective good -collaboration market: -ownership -short term orientation -shareholder returns -growth orientation -private interests -competition

What is a common resource? Tragedy of the Commons? Example of Common Pool Resources (CPR).

Examples of a common resource include land, atmosphere. Tragedy of the commons is the idea of a shared resource in which any used reaps the full benefits of their personal use, while the losses are distributed among all users. This results in a tragedy like cows grazing on a pasture. Examples of common pool resources are air, freshwater, rivers, ponds, lakes.

The Tragedy of the Commons- Garett Hardin (1915-2003)

Hardin's First Law of Human Ecology= "WE can never do merely one thing. Any intrusion into nature has numerous effects, many of which are unpredictable." Also said "A finite world can support only a finite population; therefore population growth must eventually equal zero" He was an American ecologist and scientist who warned of the dangers of overpopulation.

Article: The Tragedy of the Commons by Garett Hardin

He doesn't believe that Bentham's "Greatest Good for the Greatest Number" is possible because, it's both mathematically and biologically impossible. The acquisition of energy is the problem. Another problem is that different people want different goods. Also defining what the maximum and optimum level for population is unknown. Hardin said we can't make any progress towards optimum population unless we embrace Adam Smith's idea of decisions made by the individual are the best decisions for the entire population. The tragedy of the commons comes from each individual trying to maximize their gain. Each person is trapped in a cycle where they won't stop because they're always trying to maximize their gain. An example of tragedy of the commons is pollution. The rational man believes that the cost of polluting is cheaper than the cost of cleaning up. How do we legislate temperance? Hardin believes freedom to breed is intolerable. Hardin says the commons is only justifiable under low population density. He believes that no technical solution can free us from overpopulation.

Hardin's Suggestion to Tragedy of the Commons

He wants mutual coercion so that the regulation is accepted by the majority involved and imposed on all involved. E.g. Speed Limits, Income Tax, Fishing limits.

The Tragedy of the Commons- Cow Example

There's an open pasture thats shared by herders and each owner wants to increase their herd and maximize their benefit which leads to overgrazing. 1)Shared Resource= No cows yet 2) Sustainable Use= 20 cows 3) Depleted Resource= 20+ cows Each farmer decides whether or not to add a sheep based on the marginal gain. Since their gain is always greater than their loss they continue to add sheep. Meanwhile the commons can only regenerate so fast. The more sheep they add the less time the grass has to regenerate until theres no more left.

Define ZPG (Zero Population Growth)

This is the maintenance of population at a constant level by limiting the number of births only to replace the existing population. A finite world can support only a finite population thus population growth must eventually equal zero. What to do? (Garett Hardin) -Appeals to conscience won't work -'Welfare state' prevents selection against many offspring