Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability 1

Should We Rely More on Tradable Pollutionand Resource-Use Permits? The MarketplaceCan WorkThe government can set a limit on pollutionemissions or use of a resource, give pollutionor resource use permits to users, and allow them totrade their permits in the marketplace.A market-approach is for the government to grant tradablepollution and resource-use permits. The governmentsets a limit or cap on total emissions of a pollutant oruse of a resource such as a fishery. Then it issues orauctions permits that allocate the total among manufacturersor users.A permit holder not using its entire allocation canuse it as a credit against future expansion, use it in anotherpart of its operation, or sell it to other companies.In the United States, this approach has been used to reducethe emissions of sulfur dioxide and several otherair pollutants, as discussed on p. 454. Tradable rightscan also be established among countries to help preservebiodiversity and reduce emissions of greenhousegases and other pollutants with harmful regional orglobal effects.Figure 26-12 lists advantages and disadvantagesof using tradable pollution and resource-use permits.The effectiveness of such programs depends on howhigh or low the initial cap is set and the rate at whichthe cap is reduced.xHOW WOULD YOU VOTE? Do the advantages of usingtradable pollution and resource use permits to reduce pollutionand resource waste outweigh the disadvantages? Castyour vote online at http://biology.brookscole.com/miller14.How Can Eco-Labeling Improve EnvironmentalQuality and Reduce Resource Waste?Informing ConsumersLabeling environmentally beneficial goods andresources extracted by more sustainable methodscan help consumers decide what goods and servicesto buy.We can use product eco-labeling to encourage companiesto develop green products and services and to helpconsumers select more environmentally beneficialproducts and services. Eco-labeling programs havebeen developed in Europe, Japan, Canada, and theTrade-OffsTradable Environmental PermitsAdvantagesDisadvantagesFlexibleEasy to administerEncourages pollutionprevention and wastereductionCan guaranteeachievement of capsPermit pricesdetermined by markettransactionsConfronts ethicalproblem of how muchpollution or resourcewaste is acceptableContronts problem ofhow permits should befairly distributedBig polluters and resource wasters can buy theirway outMay not reduce pollution at dirtiest plantsCan exclude small companies from buyingpermitsCaps can be too lowCaps must be gradually reduced to encourageinnovationDetermining caps is difficultMust decide who gets permits and whyAdministrative costs high with many participantsEmissions and resource wastes must bemonitoredSelf-monitoring can promote cheatingSets bad example by selling legal rights topollute or waste resourcesFigure 26-12 Trade-offs: advantages and disadvantages of using tradable pollution and resourceusepermits to reduce pollution and resource waste. Pick the single advantage and disadvantagethat you think are the most important.http://biology.brookscole.com/miller14597