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The public man-

believe that only the government can be

government with the proper stewardship and

trusted to preserve and beautify such lands.6 7

husbanding of such resources. It is also

agement of lands,

This view receives intellectual support from

important to realize that the public manage-

which is subject-

economists who perpetuate the myth that

ment of lands, which is subjected to a spec-

ed to a spectrum

the theory of market failure in the presence

trum of conflicting political interests, creates

of public goods implies, ipso facto, the need

common property­like incentives to over-

of conflicting

for government production, ownership, and

graze grassland, overcut some forests (but

political interests,

management of such goods. But this is a non

undercut others), or overcrowd many parks.

sequitur, since the same economic logic leads

And where public land management encoun-

creates common

to the theory of government failure in pro-

ters weakly organized political opposition,

property­like

viding public goods through majority rule

the budget-expanding incentives of govern-

incentives to

and bureaucratic processes.68 Even a public

ment agencies tend to dominate policy deter-

lands supporter such as resource economist

mination. That is particularly evident in the

overgraze grass-

John Loomis of Colorado State University

80-year history of large dam construction by

land, overcut

acknowledges that "despite the best of inten-

the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army

some forests, or

tions by managers, politicians often impose

Corps of Engineers. No private power com

-

inefficiencies to benefit their local con-

pany, no consortium of such companies, and

overcrowd many

stituencies. These inefficiencies are not only

no industrial combine would have wasted its

parks.

economically unsound, they are environmen-

capital by flooding 186 miles of the Colorado

tally unsound."6 9

River from Glen Canyon to Cataract Canyon

then followed with a downstream proposal

Other individuals and groups may oppose

to flood Marble Canyon and Grand Canyon

divestiture, though they strongly disapprove

behind two great new dams.

of public land-management policies, because

Neither is it an efficient use of environ-

they hope to change those policies directly

mentalist resources to carry out political bat-

within existing institutions. We think both

tles aimed at preventing environmental

views are naive in their assessment of the real-

degradation at the hand of the government.

ity of public land management and of the

Everyone would benefit if the funds and

efficacy of resource allocation and manage-

effort expended by environmental groups

ment through political processes.

were diverted from political action to the

The proposal outlined in this paper is

direct acquisition and management of

unlikely to be received with favor, initially,

amenity resources. Similar benefits would

by environmentalists or by many econo-

result if the expenditures by oil, forest prod-

mists with well-intentioned concern for the

uct, and ranching and mining interests to

existence of "public good" externalities in

influence the leasing policies of public land-

amenity resource use. We share the con-

management agencies were channeled into

cerns of both groups, but we think it is time

the direct acquisition and development of

to get beyond superficial market failure

subsurface, grazing, and timber resources.

theorems that ignore the role of property

The premise of this paper is that land use

rights and institutions in a market econo-

should be depoliticized and determined by

my. For economists, the problem is to iden-

economic criteria operating through markets

tify those property right characteristics that

in which the various functional uses of land

have allowed private markets to succeed, to

are recognized in the form of elemental prop-

develop some principles of the relationship

erty rights. Where public lands have already

between property rights and market effi-

been set aside as primitive, wilderness, or park

ciency, and to ask how and at what cost

areas, a case can be made for keeping the sur-

those principles can be applied to public

face rights intact. Just as environmental orga-

resource allocation problems.

nizations such as the Nature Conservancy

For environmentalists, it is important to

and the National Audubon Society have

get beyond the visceral misidentification of

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