Public property resources are typically resources with a large number of users and where a central authority has the final say regarding rules and regulations. Rules and regulations state what is permitted and what is illegal. Often this type of policy is referred to as "command and control". The other alternative is market-based policies what we will deal with in the next sections.

In the quiz in Section 3.2.4, you saw that policy innovations have come as reactions to existing problems rather than as a result of forward-looking analysis. Each new policy has generated new problems. For a long historical period, governments focused on developing more efficient fishing technologies. This included better methods to find, catch, transport, process, and sell fish. As a result of productivity improvements, fish stocks were run down. New policies were implemented to limit access by closing fisheries, by restricting fishing to certain seasons, by setting standards for fishing gear such as mesh sizes, by setting total yearly quotas, by prohibiting discarding of low-value bycatch, and more recently by establishing sanctuaries where fishing is prohibited. As a consequence of many of these policies, overcapacity became a problem, and policies requiring licensing of fishing capacity was implemented. With licensing, one had to deal with how to define fishing capacity. One simple measure used was the length of fishing vessels. This led to the construction of boats that were short and wide, with high fuel consumption as one side effect. To deal with overcapacity and to increase efficiency, policies that rely on the market mechanism have been implemented. More about that in later sections.

To circumvent rules, fishers have engaged in illegal fishing. This has led to new systems for surveillance, monitoring, and punishment. As a major step to deal with the international commons problem, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) extended national rights to 200 nautical miles (370 km) offshore. These exclusive economic zones (EEZs) apply to all natural resources within the borders.