A stock pollutant is a residual waste that can accumulate or degrade over time. Aldicarb was a pesticide used by farmers growing fruit and vegetables. Potato growers on eastern Long Island, New York, used aldicarb from 1975 to 1979 to control the Colorado potato beetle and the golden nematode. In August of 1979 aldicarb residues were detected in well water, and subsequent testing found more than 2,000 wells with concentrations in excess of the New York State health standard of 7 parts per billion (ppb). Aldicarb was banned from use on Long Island after 1979. In this paper we develop a dynamic model of a stock pollutant. The model is calibrated for aldicarb on eastern Long Island and steady-state solutions for static profit-maximizing rate and the maximization of discounted net benefits (welfare}are estimated. The New York State health standard of 7 ppb is associated with a pesticide application rate less than one-tenth the profit-maximizing rate and it contamination at about $1.5 million. Simulations indicate that the average concentration of aldicarb is not expected to decline below 7 ppb until 1996.
Download Info
To download:
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the
proper application to
view it first. Information about this may be contained
in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read
the IDEAS help
page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS
site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
Publisher Info
Paper provided by Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management in its series Working Papers with number
6328.
References listed on IDEAS Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
Spence, A Michael & Starrett, David, 1975.
"Most Rapid Approach Paths in Accumulation Problems,"
International Economic Review,
Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 16(2), pages 388-403, June.
[Downloadable!] (restricted)
Cited by: (explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)