A circular solution to the tragedy of the commons
By Sarah Jaclyn Hertrick, MPA
The 1960s gave rise to the modern environmental movement in the United States. Several widely publicized events raised concerns about environmental preservation and degradation. This led to landmark environmental and wildlife protection policies such as the Endangered Species Act (1973), the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments (1972), and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency (1970).
Cuyahoga River Fire - from Ohio History Central
At a time when Americans were witnessing the devastating environmental impacts from chemical use, oil spills, river fires, and other pollution, Garrett Hardin, an evolutionary biologist published “The Tragedy of the Commons” in 1968.
Hardin highlights the conflict between individual and collective needs when it comes to shared resources, which he calls “the commons.” If individuals act in their own self-interest, they will reap the greatest benefit from the resource until it becomes depleted or is no longer beneficial.
To illustrate his point, he provides an analogy of herdsmen allowing their cattle to graze on a shared field (the “commons”). The rational herdsman will seek to maximize his gain by adding additional cattle, thereby increasing his benefit. By thinking logically but not collectively, only the herdsman benefits from the additional cattle while the costs are shared by all. Eventually, no herdsmen will be able to use the field due to overconsumption.
“Therein is the tragedy. Each man is locked into a system that compels him to increase his herd without limit-in a world that is limited.”
The tragedy of the commons reappears in the problem of pollution, where individuals are not taking something out of the commons, but putting something in. This produces a similar conflict between individual and collective rationality because the rational man finds that it costs him less to pollute than it does to “go green.” We are, as Hardin explains, “fouling our own nest.”
Despite this knowledge, the tragedies of overconsumption and environmental degradation continue to develop on a daily basis in many ways, such as plastic pollution, off-shore dumping into our water supplies, intensive farming and mineral extraction, and air pollution from energy use and production. A report produced by the International Resource Panel (IRP), a part of the United Nations Environment Programme, shows that rising consumption has resulted in resource extraction that has tripled in 40 years, from 22 billion tons in 1970 to 70 billion tons in 2010.
The “rational man” is exhausting the planet’s life support systems, leaving humanity short of materials essential to health and quality of life. If we care about future generations, we have to care about sustainability of the commons.
Moving towards a circular economy is a critical solution to the tragedy of the commons by providing the basis for a truly sustainable and competitive economy. A circular economy reduces the tension between individual needs and collective needs, because it acknowledges that resources are finite and designs the economy around that premise. A circular model can improve waste and resource management through: maximizing the value of materials that circulate within the economy, minimizing material consumption, preventing waste from being generated and reducing hazardous components in waste products. By designing for durability, reuse and recyclability, and using old materials for new products, we can protect the commons, the environment, and future generations while boosting the economy.
However, as the tragedy we find ourselves in has been created through individual rationality and private profits, the remedy will require a multifaceted approach of regulation, economy policy, community and global actions, and a collective understanding that we all share finite resources.
For more information and resources about topics explored in this post check out Governance Solutions to the Tragedy of the Commons That Marine Plastics Have Become, Circular economy, waste and materials, OVERCONSUMPTION? Our use of the world's natural resources, and Circular Economy by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.
