Harnessing Enforcement Leverage at the Border to Minimize Biological Risk from International Live Species Trade

Resources for the Future Discussion Paper 16-34

30 Pages Posted: 16 Oct 2016

See all articles by Michael Springborn

Michael Springborn

University of California, Davis - College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences - Department of Environmental Science and Policy

Amanda R. Lindsay

Independent

Rebecca S. Epanchin-Niell

Resources for the Future

Date Written: August 17, 2016

Abstract

Allocating inspection resources over a diverse set of imports to prevent entry of plant pests and pathogens presents a substantial policy design challenge. We model inspections of live plant imports and producer responses to inspections using a “state-dependent” monitoring and enforcement model. We capture exporter abatement response to a set of feasible inspection policies from the regulator. Conditional on this behavioral response, we solve the regulator’s problem of selecting the parameters for the state-dependent monitoring regime to minimize entry of infested shipments. We account for exporter heterogeneity, fixed penalties for noncompliance, imperfect abatement control and imperfect inspections at the border. Overall, we estimate that state-dependent targeting (based on historical interceptions) cuts the rate of infested shipments that are accepted by one-fifth, relative to uniformly allocated inspections.

Keywords: state-dependent enforcement, invasive species, international trade, optimal inspections, externalities

JEL Classification: Q58, Q57, Q56

Suggested Citation

Springborn, Michael and Lindsay, Amanda R. and Epanchin-Niell, Rebecca S., Harnessing Enforcement Leverage at the Border to Minimize Biological Risk from International Live Species Trade (August 17, 2016). Resources for the Future Discussion Paper 16-34, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2851931 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2851931

Michael Springborn (Contact Author)

University of California, Davis - College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences - Department of Environmental Science and Policy ( email )

HOME PAGE: http://https://springborn.faculty.ucdavis.edu/

Amanda R. Lindsay

Independent ( email )

Rebecca S. Epanchin-Niell

Resources for the Future ( email )

1616 P Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
United States

HOME PAGE: http://www.rff.org/Researchers/Pages/ResearchersBio.aspx?ResearcherID=1886

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