(Tim Worstall) wrote in message . com...


As has been pointed out by a number of people, not limited to myself,
on this and other newsgroups, fisheries are simply the Tragedy of the
Commons writ large. Check out some of the other recent threads to see
the full arguments. But at root, that is the primary cause, not the
proximate, it is the economic structure of the industry that is at
fault. Until that is changed there will be no lasting solution.
I would also note that two countries have lasting solutions : Iceland
and Norway. And they´ve done it by making the fishermen own the fish
directly. Just as Hardin said in his original essay, one can have
either private or social solutions to the overuse of a Commons
resource. Yet at present, fisheries are still run as commons. Absurd.

Tim Worstall

Ah the sweet smell of Privatization success in Norway:

http://www.just-food.com/news_detail.asp?art=54087

NORWAY: Fisheries minister says quality of Norwegian fish is too low
14 May 2003
Source: just-food.com




The quality of both Norwegian fresh and frozen fish is too low,
according to the country's fisheries minister, Svein Ludvigsen.

Ludvigsen said that Norway was losing its reputation as a producer and
exporter of high-quality fish in traditionally strong markets such as
Brazil and France.

The conference at which Ludvigsen made his remarks decided it was
necessary to take measures to improve the quality of Norwegian fish as
soon as possible.

Ludvigsen called for more state funding to support fish production and
to introduce harsh fines for fish producers who do not maintain
quality standards, reported the Norwegian News Digest.
----------

What is that = Ludvigsen wants state funding??????????????

Also looks like Norway and Oceland have problems over "protected"
areas:

http://www.fishupdate.com/news/fulls...ing_Issue.html


And the Practice or Privatization may result in disaster also:

http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993677

The World's No.1 Science & Technology News Service



New mangrove forests threaten coral reefs


09:00 05 May 03

Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition

An audacious scheme to plant the world's desert coastlines with
mangrove trees is being condemned by marine biologists as a potential
disaster for coral reefs.

The scheme is the brainchild of a retired US cell biologist, Gordon
Sato. He wants to plant mangroves along hundreds of kilometres of
coastline in Mexico, Arabia and elsewhere. His first 250,000 trees are
already growing close to coral reefs on the shores of the Red Sea in
Eritrea.

"The object is to create whole new forests of mangrove trees in vast
areas of the world," says Sato. He believes that mangroves will fight
poverty by providing fodder for goats, and help combat global warming
by absorbing carbon from the air.

Sato estimates he could plant 50 million trees round the Red Sea
alone, and 200 million on the shores of the Gulf of California in
Mexico. If canals were used to take seawater inland, much of the
Sahara, the Arabian Peninsula and the Atacama Desert of Chile could be
planted, too. "Such forests would banish the problem of global
warming," he says.

The mangroves will be planted on beaches between the high and low
water mark. To help them grow, Sato is adding up to a tonne of
fertiliser per hectare of beach, placed in the sand in small bags that
slowly release the nutrients.


Nutrient pollution


But reef scientists say this flush of nutrients into the sea could
harm nearby reefs and destroy the fisheries on which coastal
communities now depend. "Coral reefs are extremely sensitive to
nutrient pollution," says Mark Spalding, co-author of the UN-backed
World Atlas of Coral Reefs. Sato "is working without external
scientific advice and with no environmental impact assessment", he
claims.


But Sato insists that, according to his own measurements, nitrogen and
phosphorus levels round the mangroves are indistinguishable from those
in the open sea.

The scheme has sparked a passionate debate. Some other marine
ecologists contacted by New Scientist were vehemently opposed to the
project, though they were not prepared to be quoted.

Sato, who retired as a cell biologist 11 years ago, has so far largely
funded the project himself. In autumn 2002 his work in Eritrea earned
him the prestigious Rolex award for enterprise, worth $100,000. He now
hopes corporate sponsors will come in, to allow the programme to
expand rapidly.

Mangroves along tropical shores nurture fisheries and help protect
coasts from storms, and environmentalists are keen to conserve
existing mangrove swamps. But, says Spalding, "in general, the success
stories have been in areas where mangroves had previously flourished".
Planting mangroves close to reefs could damage them, and "may threaten
rather than support coastal livelihoods".