Legal Framework and Economic Analysis for the Valuation and Management of External Costs caused by Depreciation of Public Goods
Assigning a value to a pubic good is a challenge mainly due to the lack of commercial value. This type of goods, being non marketable, cannot be validated by means of supply and demand. From the other, the evaluation is necessary. A number o economical and social parameters are affected by the assigned value of a public good and in turn, they affect the price of marketable goods. This kind of parameters are taxation, management and preservation of the environment, full use of natural and social resources. The provider of the good- usually the state- have to evaluate rationally and correctly the price in monetary units to avoid loss of capital or failure to preserve and protect the good, something that might lead to the final loss of the good. It therefore necessary the development of specific methodologies that will allow the direct and relatively easy evaluation of public goods. Directness and simplicity are the mainframe for the challenge faced in the present study. The abstract nature of the majority of public goods leads, at best, to difficulties in describing benefits and costs. In the worst case, a non-expert, a simple citizen asked to pay tax for such a provision, more often than not has complete lack of awareness even for the existence of the specific good, even if he benefits from it in everyday life.
