Astro‐Environmentalism: Towards a Polycentric Governance of Space Debris
| Published date | 01 September 2021 |
| Author | Jean‐Frédéric Morin,Benjamin Richard |
| Date | 01 September 2021 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/1758-5899.12950 |
Astro-Environmentalism: Towards a Polycentric
Governance of Space Debris
Jean-Fr
ed
eric Morinand Benjamin Richard
Universit
e Laval
Abstract
The Earth’s orbital space is increasingly threatened by debris. It is frequently described as a common-pool resource vulnerable
to a ‘tragedy of the commons’scenario. Scholars have suggested ambitious policy proposals to tackle the tragedy of space
debris and assure the sustainability of the Earth’s orbits. Their proposals can be classified into three categories: hierarchical
regulations, economic incentives and property rights. All three categories require some form of central coordination. However,
there might be an alternative approach to the problem and other potential solutions. Elinor Ostrom suggested that decentral-
ized, polycentric systems are appropriate for governing common-pool resources. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a polycen-
tric form of governance can encourage a more sustainable use of the Earth’s orbits.
1.Sustainability in outer space
Space is a polluted environment. Recent estimates suggest
that there are around 34,000 pieces of debris larger than
10 cm orbitingaround theEarth (EuropeanSpace Agency,
2020). Human activity in space is largely responsible for orbi-
tal debris, which can consist of defunct satellites, fragments
from the break-up of satellites, separated stages of launch
vehicles, discarded propellant tanks, tools dropped by astro-
nauts or even tiny flecks of paint. Depending on its altitude,
space debris has different degrees of persistence: from a few
days, in the case of debris that is less than 200km above the
Earth’s surface, to almost indefinitely, if the debris is
approaching Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) altitudes
(36,000 km above the Earth’s Equator). Peak debris density in
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) occurs at 885 km, where orbital debris
persistence is assessed in centuries (Anz-Meador et al., 2018).
The pollution of the Earth’s orbital space by debris is a
problem of major importance. Debris often delays spacecraft
launches, causes radio frequency interference, spoils tele-
scope observations, damages space structures and requires
avoidance manoeuvres. Even a tiny fleck of paint can be
highly destructive when travelling at a velocity of
25,000 km/hour.TheSpaceShuttlewasstruckwitha
microparticle of debris in 1983, which cracked its wind-
screen. In 1996, part of an old rocket hit and damaged a
French satellite in operation. In 2009, a United States Iridium
commercial satellite was destroyed in collision with a
defunct Russian satellite. Damage of this sort can have sev-
ere consequences, as societies increasingly rely on satellites
for weather forecasting, traffic control, geolocation and navi-
gation, broadcasting, communication, Internet, etc.
What makes the problem a major concern is the fact that
space debris pollution has a self-generating character: when
a piece of space debris collides with another space object,
they explode, creating additional debris, thus increasing the
likelihood of future collisions. The ‘Kessler Syndrome’refers
to a possible chain reaction of collisions that create an
exponential amount of new debris (Kessler and Cour-Palais,
1978). A self-propagating cascade of collisions of this type
would restrict outer space activities and could ultimately
block humankind’s access to space. Although the probability
of such an event is still unknown, it will only increase with
the unsustainable use of space.
A sustainable use of the Earth’s orbital space requires
three types of action: (1) mitigation efforts to reduce the
creation of new debris; (2) monitoring activities to track
even the smallest debris; and (3) remediation initiatives to
remove existing debris (Baiocchi and Welser, 2010). Engi-
neers are inventing various new devices to address the
technical aspects of these actions. However, the greatest
challenge remains the problem of collective action: how can
actors be encouraged to invest money and effort when the
benefits and risks are shared by all.
This paper reviews the various policy proposals to address
this problem of collective action. The next section presents
the canonical description of the pollution of the Earth’s orbi-
tal space as a tragedy of the commons. The following sec-
tion discusses three types of policy solutions, which are
commonly suggested. They rely on centralized coordination,
which is based on regulation, incentive and property rights,
respectively. The last section introduces a less intuitive, but
more feasible (and perhaps even more effective) approach,
based on polycentric governance.
2.The tragedy of space debris
The Earth’s orbital space is commonly referred to as a com-
mon-pool resource (Salter, 2015; Taylor, 2011; Tepper, 2019).
Goods vary along two dimensions: (1) excludability, that is,
©2021 Durham University and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Global Policy (2021) 12:4 doi: 10.1111/1758-5899.12950
Global Policy Volume 12 . Issue 4 . September 2021
568
Policy Insights
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