Do environmental scares provide information?

摘要

Few human institutions can hold a candle to the market. Even when the textbook conditions defining an ideal market are not satisfied, markets serve remarkably well in signaling the needs and availability of private commodities. Lest economists feel too sanguine about the virtues of markets, one should also acknowledge that markets do not always get it right. Indeed, as the scale of human activity continues to grow, with increases in population and in per capita consumption (that accompany rising incomes), there is little doubt that increased pressure is placed on the global resource base.