Use of Sociological Data in the Allocation of Common Property Resources: A Comparison of Practices

Abstract

"This article compares the resource planning practices of the US Forest Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service. To attain the best use of a resource, managers must balance the elements of resource ecology, economics and social impacts in their decision making. After describing the US legislative mandates on the allocation of common property resources, the author discusses the problems of incorporating sociological information and social impact analyses, and shows that there must be full agreement on the use of knowledge included in the decision-making process. He maintains that the Forest Service has been able to accommodate the legislative requirements that planning be done by interdisciplinary teams and incorporate social impact analyses, while the Fisheries Service has not."