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The mainstream view of pastoral management is founded on the principle of 'conservative stocking' as the basis for economic viability and ecological sustainability. Under this paradigm public and private interests in rangeland management should coincide. The only policy response required from government (except in extreme cases) should be the provision of effective research and extension services and appropriate opportunities for structural adjustment.

However, studies of pastoral decision-making based on optimal control theory predict that when future returns are discounted management strategies that are optimal for private benefit tend to be exploitative rather than conservative. This is particularly so if the resource is already degraded, reflecting the long lag time between management action and increased economic returns. Only when no discount is applied to future returns do privately optimal management strategies tend to coincide with the conservative stocking policy advocated by the mainstream view. Under this model, the mainstream policy settings may not be sufficient to secure the public interest. Instead, it could be argued that the market is failing and that a prima facie case exists for some form of government intervention, including the option of economic incentives, to ensure that land management outcomes conform to community expectations.