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How do you define property rights for air and water? If I own a section of a stream and I dump my garbage into it, am I polluting my property or another's prope
by AlexandrB 4y ago
How do you define property rights for air and water? If I own a section of a stream and I dump my garbage into it, am I polluting my property or another's property? What if the consequences were unforeseen (as is often the case with groundwater contamination)?
Edit: moreover how is "the free market" going to defend the property rights of others in these cases? I assume via civil litigation. But what if my victims can't afford prolonged litigation or I decide that the potential cost of a settlement is less than the cost of disposing of pollutants properly?
- WalterBright 4y ago> If I own a section of a stream and I dump my garbage into it, am I polluting my property or another's property? You're polluting other peoples' property. > how is "the free market" going to defend the property rights of others in these cases? That's the proper role of government. > But what if my victims can't afford prolonged litigation or I decide that the potential cost of a settlement is less than the cost of disposing of pollutants properly? Such issues are true of any economic system I can think of.