"The turtle war"


Environmental laws can hurt more than they protect, just because they remove accountability
Richard W. Rahn proves that economic ignorance can have catastrophic environmental impact.

Sea turtles, like many animals and fish not raised in farms, are over-exploited because no one owns them; and as a result, their numbers in the wild have been declining for hundreds of years.  The turtles also have been suffering from a loss of habitat.  Their nesting areas, tropical beaches, are also preferred by humans for living and leisure.  Human activities, such as boating, fishing and beach sports, take their toll of turtle eggs and hatchlings.  As the human population grows, particularly in tropical beach areas, the turtle is increasingly pushed out. 
 
The solution put forward by many environmentalists was to ban any global trade in turtle products, which was eventually accomplished in the 1970s.  The problem is the turtle does not recognize national borders, and hence protection does not work because low-income countries have little incentive or means to stop turtle poaching or more profitable uses for beach areas. 
 
In the 1960s, several visionaries and entrepreneurs were able to see the potential and benefits of turtle farming.  They established a turtle farm in Cayman with the goal of selling the meat and other turtle products for profit, while releasing substantial quantities of 2-year-old turtles into the sea to replenish wild stocks.  (If turtle eggs are incubated and the hatchlings are raised to 2 or 3 years of age, mortality rates are very low.)
 
After considerable time and expense (it takes a sea turtle many years to grow to maturity), the founders of the turtle farm proved the concept’s viability.  Unfortunately, by the time they were able to develop what could have been a profitable business, the endangered species act was passed in the U.S., as well as similar laws in other countries.  These laws, in essence, prohibited the international marketing of turtle products which doomed the Cayman project. 

The feel good solution isn't always the right one.

— NeoWayland

Posted: Wed - October 11, 2006 at 05:04 AM  Tag


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