Let Them Eat Risk? Wealth, Rights, and Disaster Vulnerability

PERI Working Paper No. 4

19 Pages Posted: 15 Oct 2002

See all articles by James K. Boyce

James K. Boyce

University of Massachusetts at Amherst - College of Social and Behavioral Sciences - Department of Economics

Date Written: 2000

Abstract

Disaster-vulnerability reduction is an impure public good: When provided to one it is provided to others, but not equally provided to all. This means that in addition to the question of how much disaster-vulnerability reduction to provide, policy makers face the question of to whom it should be provided. This essay distinguishes between two broad classes of approaches to the latter question, one based on wealth, the other on rights.

Keywords: natural disasters, technological disasters, risk allocation, disaster vulnerability, rights

Suggested Citation

Boyce, James K., Let Them Eat Risk? Wealth, Rights, and Disaster Vulnerability (2000). PERI Working Paper No. 4, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=331825 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.331825

James K. Boyce (Contact Author)

University of Massachusetts at Amherst - College of Social and Behavioral Sciences - Department of Economics ( email )

10th Floor Thompson Floor
Amherst, MA 01003
United States
413-545-0915 (Phone)

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