1-7 Tragedy of the Commons

APES 2024

Tragedy of the commons

Tragedy of the commons

The tendency of a shared, limited resource to become depleted if it is not regulated in some way

The tragedy of the commons only applies to

public resources

When many people share a common resource without agreement on or regulation of its use, it is likely to

become overused very quickly

Tragedy o fthe commons examples

• Overgrazing

• Overfishing

• Water and air pollution

• Overuse of groundwater

Example of overuse of groundwater

Colorado River

Externality

The cost or benefit of a good or service that is not
included in the purchase price of that good or service

No one directly suffers the consequences of overuse of

Public resources

How to solve the tragedy of the commons

• Private land ownership

• Fees for use

• Taxes/fines/criminal charges for polluters

More than 95% of all federal lands are all managed by

Four federal agencies

What are the four federal agencies

1. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)

2. U.S. Forest Service (USFS)

3. National Park Service (NPS)

4. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)

Bureau of Land Management (BLM)

Grazing, mining, timber harvesting and recreation

U.S. Forest Service (USFS)

timber harvesting, grazing, and recreation

National Park Service (NPS)

Recreation and conservation

Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)

conservation, hunting, and recreation