Common-Pool Resources of Rock Salt Mining Management in Bo Kluea Community, Nan Province

Abstract

  The study of Common-Pool Resources of Rock Salt Mining Management in Bo Kluea Community, Nan Province focused on two objectives. (1) To investigate the relationship between community and the production of rock salt. (2) To draw out ways to manage common-pool resources of rock salt mining to be sustainable. This study was conducted qualitatively by interview, group discussion, and observation of key informants in three groups: (1) 12 community leaders, local scholars and participating people; (2) 24 rock salt producers; and (3) common-pool resource experts. Subsequently, the data was analyzed and classified in different issues. The results were found that there was the relationship between the community and Bo Kluea from past to present. The ancestors had created activities to be the tool for connecting people in the community through the medium and sacred items. In addition, lacking of regulations and agreements to preserve rock salt mining as ‘public resource’, there is no resource existing. Therefore, to set connecting people in the community through the medium and sacred items. In addition, lacking of regulations and agreements to preserve rock salt mining as ‘public resource’, there is no resource existing. Therefore, to set the regulations and agreement together with the participants, the resource of rock salt mining would still be beneficial for community consecutively.
  Ways to manage common-pool resources of rock salt mining to be sustainable were: (1) the clarity of land boundary and the limit of rock salt users; (2) the accordance between the regulations for the use of rock salt mining and the regulations for the sustainability; (3) the right for everyone to be able to adjust rules or regulations; (4) the inspection of both the resource and the users; (5) the punishment for guilty people from light to heavy penalty; (6) the ability to address conflicts simply and quickly from those people who do not follow rules or regulations; (7) the permission from the public sector to the users to be able to regulate their own regulations; and (8) the accordance between the regulations of the users and the regulations of the public sector or law.