Trade‐offs for conflicting social objectives in the extraction of finite energy resources

Three social objectives figure prominently in the extraction of finite energy resources, namely income maximization, environmental quality, and inter‐generational concern. Owing to lack of complementarity, the pursuit of these objectives often results in conflicts. As a result, extraction strategies should be based on the determination of trade‐offs between the objectives. The paper deals with the formulation and illustration of a systems model to determine these trade‐offs. The recognition of such trade‐offs results in a greater conservation of the finite energy resource, and hence could act as an incentive for the development of alternative energy sources.