Finally, monoculture and the control of species found in a field all impact on bio-diversity. Obviously, monoculture changes the landscape and limits its availability for native species. It replaces a wide variety of native species of grasses, herbs, shrubs and trees with non-native plants. Less visible is its impact on microorganisms in the soil and small invertebrates both above and below ground. Accounting for Environmental Impacts Economic theory points out that environmental problems are often the result of market failures.
Market failure results when markets depart from perfectly competitive equilibrium.
Consequently, market equilibrium cannot be relied on to yield socially optimal outcomes. Environmental problems are mainly the result of two types of market failure, public goods and externalities. A public good is a commodity whereby its consumption by one individual does not preclude its consumption by another individual. The problem with no-exclusive public goods is that if a producer provides a unit of the public good all individuals benefit. This results in the free-rider problem where each consumer has an incentive to enjoy the benefits of the public good, but does not contribute to it.