ABSTRACT
Resource scarcity can be countered without violating sustainability by finding new sources of conventional materials, as well as discovering new uses for unconventional materials, including what was previously considered waste. The best resolution of the toxic substance problem, for example, is undoubtedly for all makers of potentially toxic substances to be genuinely concerned about the safety of their products and to bite the bullet whenever their research raises questions. The economic incentives approach to environmental and natural resource regulation has become a significant component of environmental and natural resource policy. Public policy and sustainable development must proceed in a mutually supportive relationship. In some cases that relationship takes the form of public– private partnerships that involve explicit agreements between government and the private sector regarding the provision of public services or infrastructure. The power of economic incentives is certainly not inevitably channeled toward the achievement of sustainable development. They can be misapplied as well as appropriately applied.
