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The existence of both of these models, the private property model and the common pool model, has raised both a central issue in environmental governance regarding what is the best way to manage resources and how can they be most effectively managed. This issue is often the most commonly represented in this idea call the ‘Tragedy of the Commons’, that common pool resources are destined to be overused. Therefore, the assumption is that when there is a resource that is held in common, people will not regulate their own use and there will be free riders that will overuse the resource.
In his seminal article in Science in 1968, Garrett Hardin used the metaphor of a pasture and herdsmen to illustrate how users of a common became caught in an inevitable process that leads to the destruction of the resource on which they all depend.
This type of overexploitation is called "Tragedy of the commons."
Open-access commons are particularly vulnerable to overexploitation because multiple individuals who act independently rationally follow their own self-interest even though they may realize that depletion of the resource on which they depend is not in anyone's long-term interest. In other words, what is best for each individual is not best for all users together.
Self check...
Between the mid 1970s and early 1990s, a series of poor management decisions and inadequate understanding of complex marine ecosystems led to the collapse of the cod fishery, devastation of livelihoods, a flux of environmental refuges, and long-term impacts on the NW Atlantic ecosystem.
Reconstruct the story of the cod collapse, by using the following elements listed below (watch out, they are NOT in order!). You may want to google the exact sequence of events, in case you can’t piece the story together yourself. Jot down the 10 crucial steps in chronological order.
What you need to know:
- The cod is a migratory species that relies on inshore breeding.
- In 1978, the NW Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) started managing fisheries beyond the 200-mile exclusive economic zones (EEZ), adopted quotas, and determined minimum mesh sizes.
- Classic fisheries management theory assumes predictability and equilibrium tendencies (‘maximum sustainable yield’)
Determine the Correct Sequence of Events:
____ Reflagging of EU vessels in non-NAFO countries to avoid regulations (‘flags of convenience’, exceeding EU catch by 600% between 1986-1992)
____ Undervaluation of traditional knowledge (winter fishery replaces summer fishery)
____ 2000: cod fishery had not recovered
____ 1994: Canada seizes Kristina Logos (vessel with Portuguese crew but Panamanian flag), ‘modern day pirates’ violating NAFO
____ New technologies: detection, draggers ‘vacuum’ ocean floors
____ 1993: cod fishery closed to artisanal fishers
____ Canada built own dragger fleet which led to a fishing bonanza
____ 1992: cod fishery closed to large draggers
____ 40,000 jobs lost
____ 2000: lumpfish, capelin, lobster, shrimp, turbot, redfish, halibut under attack
Jot down the number order of the sequence of events that lead to the collapse of the stocks of Atlantic Cod in the blank to the left. When you are done, click the icon to the left and compare your answers with the results given there.
While there could be some debate as to the correct order, here is the order we had as to the events that led to the collapse of the North Atlantic Cod industry:
