Rob Stavins' sixth "Environmental Perspective" column [The Environmental Forum®, March/April 2005] weighs in on the tragedy of the commons. In "Markets Can Make Fisheries Sustainable" he concludes:
A decade ago, environmental advocates — led by Environmental Defense — played a central role in the adoption of the sulfur dioxide allowance trading program that’s cut acid rain by half and saved electricity generators and rate-payers nearly $1 billion annually, compared with conventional approaches. The time has come for environmentalists to join forces with progressive voices in the fishing industry and in government to set up ITQ systems that can keep fishermen in business while moving fisheries onto sustainable paths.
We hope NOAA remembers this as it/they spend a year studying the environmental impact of the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
