I held a similar view about fishermen and nets. Fishermen is a low margin business and nets are a massive investment, and loosing one would cost a lot of money.

I held a similar view about fishermen and nets. Fishermen is a low margin business and nets are a massive investment, and loosing one would cost a lot of money. Look at any picture of fishermen or a fishing town and there is always a large number of nets being repaired. Repairing nets is almost an icon for the industry. So why does there exist a massive waste problem from nets being dumped in the ocean? The answer lies in large scale fishing fleets which is an industry that is not a a low margin business. For them the cost of repairing or properly disposing nets is a cost compared to just dumping them into the ocean, and even if they get fined the cost would be less than the savings. Small farmers are in a low margin business, and yes, if they use too much nitrogen they make less money. They would also get fined by local government, risk loosing farming rights and so on. Large scale farming and factory farming is not a low margin business, and sometimes the cost of violating regulations can be seen as the cheaper alternative. There is always the option to let a sub company go bankrupt, and route the profits away from the costs. Those are options not available to a small farm.