Table of Contents
The environment can be perceived as a commodity within which different factors and resources interact to bring about economic value. However, different activities carried by human factor have some determinable consequences on environmental management. The results of these activities have brought about major problems in creating a sustainable environment. An example of these activities is deforestation which is seen to affect the environment to greater extend including erosion (Schlager, pp. 294-317). Thus, it is important for human beings to manage their practices and ensure that they do not affect the state of the environment that may contribute to unsustainability.
There are other resources, which have been seen to run constantly out of supply. Such resources need to be protected from economic and social viability. This may include ensuring that the limited resources are used properly to avoid extinction. One way in which such resources can be protected from extinction involves government intervention (Blomquist, pp. 196-201). The government is seen as the core manager of environmental resources as it has the power to enforce rules and regulations on the use of different resources. Another mechanism used to manage scarce resources involves privatization, which ensures there is limited access to a certain resource that may have been marked as limited or diminishing.
The results are the inclusion of all resources under one class called common pool resources CPRs. different stakeholders should come together and develop their own regulations, which will see proper management of resources through developing rules and regulations that are to be upheld collectively. There are two main principles governing sustainability of natural resources namely consumption rivalry and the excludability. Consumption rivalry is sometimes referred to as divisibility of benefits (Blomquist, pp. 196-201). The first principle on consumption rivalry refers to the competition between individuals for the limited resources. Excludability refers to curbing people from using a certain resource with the expectation that they will later benefit from the prohibition.
Common pool resources refer to the resources that are biologically no excludable. They are human contracted including pastoral and or paths that differ from public goods categorized under rivalry. Collective actions are required when approaching the social dilemma in common pool resources. This can help achieve a sustainable management of natural resources. Different individuals can come together and develop rules and regulations aimed at managing natural resources for a log period. Different communities can benefit from sustainable natural resources management thus overcoming social dilemma. Different institutions should be developed aimed at managing common pool resources. Many advantages are involved in adopting common pool resources as opposed to rights of private property.
Users of common pool resources work together when developing rules in response to the associated resources dilemma (Ostrom, p. 23). These rules can later be adopted if they work at this level. Other self-developed organizations should acknowledge the need for teamwork and collective management rather than operating individually to achieve better outcomes associated with the simple rules. Collective management of natural resources will constitute laws that can fit local conditions and collective choice arrangement. Other areas of practice will involve resolution of conflict venues, monitoring, the establishment of associations and graduated sanctions.
Resolution using Ostrom’s Rules
Realities associated with environmental problems there is a global risk of environmental activities. According to Ostrom’s research, there is a possible solution to the increasing environmental problem. It is recorded that CPR can develop a collective effect of reversing environmental decrement and developing sustainable management (Ostrom p. 23). According to CPR definition, relatively small sized resource systems can be managed better under use of common property management. Its implication will be proper management of resources recognized as common property. The greatest level of management can be achieved by punishing violation with graduate sanctions. There is increasing congestion over the last few years. The environment has recorded a major increase in population creating fear among users about changes in prices of a certain domain.
They expect these resources to increase in price thus become difficult to obtain certain benefits. Environmental sustainability has been recognized by policy makers together with other users on the need to manage associated risks. The potential of Ostrom’s research must be advanced through conducting further studies on its association with environmental control (Schlager, pp. 294-317). This article has illustrated the growing need for environmental management on resources towards creating sustainability. Furthermore, different organizations and private sectors should come together and develop rules and regulations that are aimed at managing resources.
- Dietz, T., E. Ostrom, P. Stern. The Struggle to Govern the Commons. Science, Vol. 302, pp. 19071912, 2003.
- Edella Schlager, William Blomquist and Shui Yan Tang Land Economics. Vol. 70, No. 3 (Aug., 1994), pp. 294-317.
- Ostrom, E.: Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action. Cambridge University Press, UK, 1990.