Free Market Environmentalism

Environmentalism mainly concerns with the process of conserving environment and improvement of the state of environment. There is a theory of environmentalism which is called as free market environmentalism. This theory argues that the free market, property rights and tort law offer the best tools to preserve the health and sustainability of the environment. It considers environmental stewardship to be natural, as well as the expulsion of polluters and other aggressors through individual and class action. Let’s gather brief information on free market environmentalism in the given article.

The problems of environment may be viewed or seen as market failure and according to the free market environmentalism theory or environmentalists; environmental problems arise due to the laws that obscure property rights and therefore fails to adequately protect or define those rights. Another reason is because of the laws governing class tort claims that offer polluters with immunity from tort claims, or interfere with those claims in such a way as to make it difficult to legally sustain them. And according to free market environmentalist, the best way for protecting environment is to allow tort and contract laws governing. Know more about free market environmentalism.

According to Robin Hahnel, an ecological economist, there are 4 basic defects or errors of economy of the market with respect to the environment. They are – overexploitation of property resources, over pollution, too little pollution cleanup and overconsumption. In response to these concerns, those economists who prefer free-market environmentalism and environmentalist express their views and argue that:

1) Overexploitation is mainly due to the lack of ownership incentives to care for the property. This communalization results the extent of multiplicity of ownership. Overexploitation minimizes the natural and retail value of the property, the effect of which is most distinctly felt by individual owners or via limited co-ownership.

2) Pollution take place where and to the extent that victims are obviated or hindered from seeking tort restitution for such aggression. Legislative and Judicial authorities have tended to favor heavy industries over individual or class action in favor of public property and common good.

3) Pollution cleanup also take place in a free market since minimizing the negative value of a property is a net gain, again leads to a higher natural or retail value, and thus marketability.

4) Over consumption is a faulty concept, since it presumes that resources are non-renewable. The market, through supply and demand, regulates consumption by adjusting it according to supply.