In a new deal with environmentalists, the Obama administration has agreed to work through a backlog list of species that require additional study to determine if they should be given protection under the Endangered Species Act. Some of these species were proposed for protection in 1973 when the Act was passed. Nearly 40 years later,Continue reading “A Political List”
Author Archives: admin
Liberia is saving its rainforests with barcoding
The West African nation of Liberia has partnered with the European Union in a unique attempt to protect its remaining forests by barcoding every harvestable tree.
Video: Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights
Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights is the first in a series of PERC videos that will document how free market environmentalism solves real-world conservation problems. Donald Leal, PERC’s research director, and Mark Lundsten, a former boat captain on the Bering Sea, combine research and industry experience to describe what happens when open-access fishing is replaced withContinue reading “Video: Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights”
Same Old Song and Dance Over CA Parks
Once again California is threatening to close state parks. Seventy (out of 270) parks are on the chopping block this time around (see an interactive map of the planned closures). The plan is to place the parks in “caretaker status,” which means gates would be closed and people would not be allowed to enter. What a dismal idea from a stateContinue reading “Same Old Song and Dance Over CA Parks”
Is fair trade coffee fair?
The conventional view is that the premium paid for fair trade coffee results in higher wages and better living standards for coffee farmers in the developing world. A new study published in Ecological Economics this month challenges that view. The study finds that the effects of certified fair trade coffee production on poverty levels are notContinue reading “Is fair trade coffee fair?”
Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights
Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights is the first in a series of PERC videos that will document how Free Market Environmentalism solves real-world conservation problems. Don Leal, PERC’s research director, and Mark Lundsten, a former boat captain on the Bering sea, combine research and real life to tell what happens when open access fishingContinue reading “Saving Ocean Fisheries with Property Rights”
Fair-trade coffee producers often end up poorer
By Lawrence Solomon Coffee is one of our guilty pleasures, and not only because of the calories that can be packed into a double latte. Many of us feel guilty that our pleasure is coming at the expense of the Third World coffee farmer, so much so that we gladly pay more for “fair-trade”Continue reading “Fair-trade coffee producers often end up poorer”
The Non-tragedy of the Bison Commons
M. Scott Taylor, in a forthcoming article in the American Economic Review, provides important evidence about the driving force behind the rapid killing of bison on the Great Plains between 1870 and 1883. Taylor’s explanation of the rapid expansion of foreign demand for hides because of technological innovations in tanning is convincing. Taylor usesContinue reading “The Non-tragedy of the Bison Commons”
Ethanol Mania
Henry Miller at the Hoover Institution had a great piece in the Guardian yesterday–“The Great Fuel Fail.” Rather than just simply stating that the production of ethanol for fuel is an unwise subsidy to special interests, Henry puts some perspective on the ethanol mania. Although corn is a renewable resource, it has a far lower energy yield relative toContinue reading “Ethanol Mania”
The Value of Secure Property Rights: Evidence from Global Fisheries
That’s the title of a new NBER Working Paper by Corbett A. Grainger and Christopher Costello. The abstract: Property rights are commonly touted as a solution to common pool resource problems. But in practice the security of these property rights varies substantially owing to differences in design. In fisheries, the design of individual transferable quotasContinue reading “The Value of Secure Property Rights: Evidence from Global Fisheries”