3. An externality is a consequence of an economic activity experienced by unrelated third parties; it can be either positive or negative. Evaluate the positive externalities and the negative externalities through examples from the real life

3. An externality is a consequence of an economic activity experienced by unrelated third parties; it can be either positive or negative. Evaluate the positive externalities and the negative externalities through examples from the real life

ECON MICRO

5th Edition

ISBN:9781337000536

Author:William A. McEachern

Publisher:William A. McEachern

Chapter17: Externalities And The Environment

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 2.3P: (Negative Externalities) Suppose you wish to reduce a negative externality by imposing a tax on the...

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Do market demand curves reflect positive externalities? Why or why not?
Suppose a city releases 16 million gallons of raw sewage into a nearby lake. Table 12.8 shows the total costs of cleaning up the sewage to different levels, together with the total benefits of doing so. (Benefits include environmental, recreational, health, and industrial benefits.) Using the information in Table 12.8, calculate the marginal costs and marginal benefits of reducing sewage emissions for this city. See Production, Costs and Industry Structure if you need a refresher on how to calculate marginal costs. What is the optimal level of sewage for this city? Why not just pass a law that films can emit zero sewage? After all, the total benefits of zero emissions exceed the total costs.
Refer to Table 12.2. The externality created by the refrigerator production was 100. However, once we accounted for both the private and additional external costs, the market price increased by only 50. If the external costs were 100 why did the price only increase by 50 when we accounted for all costs?
In the Land of Purity, there is only one form of pollution, called gunk. Table 12.14 shows possible combinations of economic output and reduction of gunk, depending on what kinds of environmental regulations you choose. Sketch a graph of a production possibility frontier with environmental quality on the horizontal axis, measured by the percentage reduction of gunk, and with the quantity of economic output on the vertical axis. Which choices display productive efficiency? How can you tell? Which choices show allocative efficiency? How can you tell? In the choice between K and L, can you say which one is better and why? In the choice between K. and N, can you say which one is better, and why? If you had to guess, which choice would you think is move likely to represent a command-and-control environmental policy and which choice is more likely to represent a market-oriented environmental policy, choice L or M? Why?
(Negative Externalities) Suppose you wish to reduce a negative externality by imposing a tax on the activity that creates that externality. When the amount of the externality produced per unit of output increases as output increases, the correct tax can be determined by using a demand-supply diagram; show this. Assume that the marginal private cost curve slopes upward. Negative Externalities: The Market for Electricity in the Midwest:
Identify the following situations as an example of a negative or a positive externality: You are a birder (bird watcher), and your neighbor has put up several birdhouses in the yard as well as planting trees and flowers that attract birds. Your neighbor paints his house a hideous color. Investments in private education raise your countrys standard of living. Trash dumped upstream flows downstream right past your home. Your roommate is a smoker, but you are a nonsmoker.
A country called Sherwood is very heavily covered with a forest of 50,000 trees. There are proposals to clear some of Sherwoods forest and grow com, but obtaining this additional economic output will have an environmental cost from reducing the number of trees. Table 12.11 shows possible combinations of economic output and environmental protection. Sketch a graph of a production possibility frontier with environmental quality on the horizontal axis, measured by the number of trees, and the quantity of economic output, measured in corn, on the vertical axis. Which choices display productive efficiency? How can you tell? Which choices show allocative efficiency? How can you tell? In the choice between T and R, decide which one is better. Why? In the choice between T and S, can you say which one is better, and why? If you had to guess, which choice would you think is more likely to represent a command-and-control environmental policy and which choice is more likely to represent a market-oriented environmental policy, choice Q or S? Why?
Classify the following pollution-control policies as command-and-control or market incentive based. A state emissions tax on the quantity of carbon emitted by each firm. The federal government requires domestic auto companies to improve car emissions by 2020. The EPA sets national standards for water quality. A city sells permits to films that allow them to emit a specified quantity of pollution. The federal government pays fishermen to preserve salmon.
Show the market for cigarettes in equilibrium, assuming that there are no laws banning smoking in public. Label the equilibrium private market price and quantity as Pm and Qm. Add whatever is needed to the model to show the impact of the negative externality from second-hand smoking. (Hint: In this case it is the consumers, not the sellers, who are creating the negative externality.) Label the social optimal output and price as Fe and Qe. On the graph, shade in the deadweight loss at the market output.
From an economic perspective, is it sound policy to pursue a goal of zero pollution? Why or why not?
Assume that the marginal private costs of a film producing fuel-efficient can; is greater than the marginal social costs. Assume that the marginal private benefits of a firm producing fuel efficient cars are the same as the marginal social benefits. Discuss one wags.r that the government cans ï¬‚y to increase production and sales of fuel efficient cars to the socially desirable amount. Hint: the government is flying to affect production through costs, net benefits.
Table 12.12, shows the supply and demand conditions for a firm that will play trumpets on the streets when requested. QS1 is the quantity supplied without social costs. QS2 is the quantity supplied with social costs. What is the negative externality in this situation? Identify the equilibrium price and quantity when we account only for private costs, and then when we account for social costs. How does accounting for the externality affect the equilibrium price and quantity?