Weak States and the Commons: Fisheries and Economic Development in the Gaspesian Peninsula circa 1830

31 Pages Posted: 10 Jan 2023 Last revised: 2 Feb 2023

See all articles by Vincent Geloso

Vincent Geloso

George Mason University - Department of Economics

Félix Foucher-Paquin

HEC Montréal

Date Written: January 10, 2023

Abstract

The inefficiencies of common property fisheries are well-known to economists. To avoid over-exploitation, they propose multiple forms of government solutions like taxes, quotas and the enforcement of property rights regimes designed to avoid over-harvesting. However, can there be efficient arrangements under statelessness or in the presence of weak states? One such example is the Gaspesian Peninsula (in the Canadian province of Quebec) during the first half of the 19th century. There, a single firm (the Charles Robin Company) came to dominate the market and it was able to effectively to restrict entry. In this paper, we unveil that it was able to do so by reducing the prices of imported goods that it would give to local fishermen in exchange for a part of their catch. This had the effect of deterring fishermen to contract with other merchants as well as deterring other merchants from entering the market. It also had the effect of making the region, contrary to what historians depict, richer than most regions of Canada at the time. We take this as an example of the ability to deal with commons problems in the presence of weak states.

Keywords: Common Access Resource; Fisheries; Canadian Economic History; Monopoly

JEL Classification: N11, E50

Suggested Citation

Geloso, Vincent and Foucher-Paquin, Félix, Weak States and the Commons: Fisheries and Economic Development in the Gaspesian Peninsula circa 1830 (January 10, 2023). GMU Working Paper in Economics No. 23-04, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4321250 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4321250

Vincent Geloso (Contact Author)

George Mason University - Department of Economics ( email )

4400 University Drive
Fairfax, VA 22030
United States

Félix Foucher-Paquin

HEC Montréal ( email )

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