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Old 12-15-2005, 06:05 PM
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Default Re: Toyota: \"No Financial Justification in US for Buying Hybrids\"

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If the roads were privatized, their owners could be rightly sued for the pollution they create.

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This doesnt work under American tort law for many reasons. First, as a practical matter, any individual's "injury" from pollution is likely to be de minimum, and thus individually there is no incentive to sue (even though collectively the injury might be material). Second, because each individual's injury is de minimus, any provable damages would also be de minimus. Thus even if you wanted to get lawyered up to sue, there is no economic incentive to sue. Third, thus the primary remedy you're talking about is really injunctive in nature--ie, an order from the court to the defendant "to stop polluting." This is a classic case of a situation where government intervention is appropriate--protection of public goods where a collective action problem prevents the tort law from properly functioning. Fourth, the use of lawyers to reduce pollution is an unnecessary economic deadweight loss--lawyers essentially are economic friction for both the plaintiff and defendant. A much more efficient solution is regulation, with each individual complying voluntarily with regulations b/c of the threat of being discovered and sanctioned (criminally or civilly). Economists would describe this as lowered "fencing costs". Fifth, it is not even clear that road owners could be held liable under tort law for the pollution caused by the operators of vehicles. For instance, road owners could make a rule: "Only low-emission vehicles may enter the tollway. By driving on our tollway, you represent that you drive a low emission vehicle." If it turns out that a high-emission vehicle were driving on the tollway (and thus causing a pollution "injury"), the toll road owner would probably not be liable under American tortlaw, because the injury was caused by an intervening tortfeasor. Thus, as a legal matter, your approach is contrary to American principles of civil liability.

Im all for market solutions and individual action, but your example is really horrible.
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