Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
crudest such instrument is a general tari
on trade. However, the seemingly simple rela-
tionship between trade restrictions and damage outlined above may fail for at least two
reasons. First, as pointed out theoretically by Rosenzweig (1995) for species accumulation
in general, and empirically by Levine and D'Antonio (2003), Solow and Costello (2004) and
Costello et al. (2007), there exists an attenuation of the introduction rate from a given host
to a given destination. This arises from the erosion of the 'introducible' species pool in the
host region. So,
ceteris paribus
, a constant tari
ff
ect on introduc-
tions over time. Second, general equilibrium interactions may even reverse a tari
ff
may have a declining e
ff
ect.
Costello and McAusland (2003) adopt a general equilibrium framework with competitive
industries; they point out that import tari
ff
's e
ff
s on agricultural goods will lead to agricultural
expansion in the protected country, expanding the platform for NIS invasions and associ-
ated damage. Thus, even though tari
ff
s may reduce the overall rate of NIS introductions,
they may lead to higher NIS damage overall.
4
Finally, Acquaye et al. (2005) point out that
direct measures of costs from restricting imports for NIS prevention purposes may be over-
stated if analysts neglect to consider concurrent distortions such as commodity programs
(i.e. subsidies). They
ff
nd subsidy interactions from restrictions aimed at citrus canker
reduce estimates of US consumer, producer and taxpayer losses by $10 million.
fi
Pre-emptive policies
The principle of targeting advocates policy instruments aimed at acts most closely linked
to the externality of interest. There is a wide array of policy instruments available for pre-
empting NIS introductions, ranging from price-based instruments to process standards
to liability rules and quarantine. Below we give examples of applications of the di
ff
erent
policy instruments.
Price-based instruments
Inspection-recovery fees
The quarantine service in New Zealand is required to recover
costs where possible (Mumford, 2002). In the USA, APHIS (Animal and Public Health
Information System) inspects incoming propagative and non-propagative cargo as well as
air passengers, collecting user fees to partially recover the cost of inspections (GAO, 2006).
Taxes
In 2007, Hawaii's legislature passed Senate Bill 1066 imposing a $1 fee on each
shipping container entering Hawaii (State of Hawaii, S.B. No. 1066); the governor's sub-
sequent veto was overridden by 2/3 votes in both the House and Senate. Although rev-
enues go into a Pest Inspection, Quarantine, and Eradication Fund to o
set inspection
costs, the tax is levied on all incoming shipments, regardless of whether they are ultimately
searched.
ff
Tari
ect of encour-
aging imports of raw products, which are more likely to have higher NIS risk (Tu et al.,
forthcoming).
ff
s
Although not set with NIS risk in mind, tari
ff
escalation has the e
ff
Quantitative import restrictions/import bans
The US import ban on Mexican avocados was partially lifted in 1993 when avocados
were allowed entry into Alaska. In 2005, avocados grown in Michoacán, Mexico were
