Deck 9: Criteria for Evaluating Environmental Policies

Question 1

A centralized policy requires that

A)a controlling administrative agency be responsible for determining what is to be done
B)all firms and individual decision makers make individual assessments about their emission levels
C)net incomes are maximized
D)all of the above

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The of a policy is not a criterion used to evaluate a pollution control policy.

A)political acceptability
B)fairness
C)cost-effectiveness
D)incentives to innovate

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Policies that can be readily adapted to new information about damages, technological innovation and changing economic or social conditions are considered .

A)morally superior
B)politically expedient
C)fair
D)flexible

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The paradox of sanctioning is

A)the greater the sanction (fines, jail time, etc) the greater the deterrent, however courts are reluctant to apply large sanctions
B)the greater the enforcement costs, the more likely firms are to avoid compliance
C)the larger the sanction, the greater the publicity
D)all of the above

Question 5

A program or policy is efficient if

A)a maximum of net benefits for society
B)it distributes benefit equally among society's members
C)it maximizes the net income to society
D)all of the above

Question 6

Public policy makers typically do not have totally accurate information about the pollution control costs that a firms or industries face in the real world.Accurate information regarding the costs of adaptation are, for the most part,

A)unavailable
B)private information
C)public information
D)market information

Question 7

Moral objections to the use of effluent subsidies to help firms reduce their emissions arise from the idea that .

A)the polluter should pay
B)subsidies are politically unpalatable
C)subsidies can never be cost-effective
D)effluent taxes work better than subsidies

Question 8

Refer to the table above.Group X represents a low income group and Group Y represents a high income group.On the basis of equity, which program is optimal?

A)Program A
B)Program B
C)Program C
D)indeterminate

Question 9

One of the criteria of evaluating environmental policy is whether the policy provides incentives to find efficient and innovative ways to lower the abatement cost curve.Which of the following are potential contributors to lowered abatement costs?

A)research and development
B)education
C)training
D)all of the above

Question 10

A centralized policy requires that

A)a controlling administrative agency be responsible for determining what is to be done
B)all firms and individual decision makers make individual assessments about their emission levels
C)net incomes are maximized
D)all of the above

Question 11

A technology forcing policy is one that

A)forces firms to use a specific technology to abate emissions
B)require pollution control targets that force firms to innovate in order to meet the targets and experience reasonable cost increases.
C)forces technology firms to develop environmentally friendly solutions
D)none of the above

Question 12

Due to the concept that economist call asymmetric information, polluting firms can mislead regulators regarding the costs of abatement.It is often in the interest of polluting firms to _________ the costs abatement so that the regulated target for emissions is _______ than the socially efficient level.

A)understate; lower
B)understate; higer
C)overstate; lower
D)overstate; higher

Question 13

Refer to the figure above.MAC₁ represents a mis-estimation of abatement costs.True abatement costs are MAC₂, however the regulatory agency believes that the costs are represented at MAC₁ and sets policy accordingly.Due to this error, emissions are ________ than the socially efficient level and damages are ___________ than the socially efficient level.

A)lower; lower
B)lower; higher
C)higher; lower
D)higher; higher

Question 14

Which of the following is a criteria used by environmental economists to evaluate environmental policies.

A)efficiency
B)fairness
C)equity
D)all of the above

Question 15

Two main steps in enforcement are

A)monitoring and sanctioning
B)moral suasion and evasion
C)developing technology and attending court
D)reporting to the GAO and ensuring compliance

Question 16

For a policy to be _____________ it must be _______________.

A)efficient; cost effective
B)cost effective; efficient
C)efficient; centralized
D)efficient; decentralized

Question 17

Cost effectiveness is an important piece of the evaluation of public policy because

A)damages are often difficult to estimate
B)cost effectiveness ensures efficiency
C)cost effectiveness ensures a socially optimal outcome, balancing benefits with costs
D)all of the above

Question 18

The rate of technological change for environmental improvement may be too slow because

A)private markets typically undersupply private goods
B)private markets typically undersupply public goods
C)regulating private markets is typically ineffective
D)there are no market for public goods

Question 19

Environmental justice is concerned that racial minorities and low-income people are disproportionately exposed to environmental contaminants.The primary concern of environmental justice advocates has been exposure to the pollutants coming from

A)indoor air pollution
B)lead exposure
C)water pollution
D)hazardous waste sites

Question 20

Refer to the table above.Group X represents a low income group and Group Y represents a high income group.On the basis of efficiency, which program is optimal?

A)Program A
B)Program B
C)Program C
D)indeterminate

Question 21

Cross media transfers refer to

A)television and other media pressure for environmental control
B)the use of media to threaten environmental regulations
C)the fact asserted by the materials balance equation that reductions of emissions into one media typically result in more emissions into another media, not a total reduction in emissions.
D)both A and B

Question 22

In economics, the concept of government failure refers to

A)tendencies within the government that work against efficient and equitable public policy
B)the conservative agenda
C)pro-business legislative agendas
D)a stagnation in Congress

Question 23

In economics, the concept of market failure refers to

A)the failure of unregulated markets to offer the lowest possible prices
B)a situation where unregulated markets fail to offer efficient and equitable results
C)a lack of equilibrium
D)demand curves that have no slope

Question 24

The materials balance equation asserts that, given a certain quantity of residuals, if the flow going into one environmental medium is reduced (e.g., water) the flow going into the others (air and/or land) must __________.

A)decrease
B)increase
C)increase exponentially
D)increase proportionately

Question 25

It has been determined that the Clean Air Act's command and control policies that permit frequent adjustment and adaptation to new circumstances are

A)inefficient in the short run, but substantially more efficient in the long run
B)efficient in the short run, but substantially more inefficient in the long run
C)pro-business in their effect
D)inefficient in both the short and long run

Question 26

Moral considerations are often a part of the criteria for evaluating public policy.Which of the following is not a moral consideration regarding environmental policy?

A)polluters should not be rewarded for terminating environmentally damaging behavior
B)those who cause the problem should bear the burden of alleviating it
C)polluting is an immoral behavior
D)all of the above are moral argument used to evaluate environmental policy

Question 27

As major U.S.federal environmental legislation has slowed,

A)individual states have played a growing role in environmental policy
B)the United Nations have played a growing role in environmental policy
C)individual municipalities have played a growing role in environmental policy
D)environmental policy has stagnated

Question 28

When examining environmental policy outcomes and consequences, equity considerations can be examined at the level of

A)income
B)region
C)international
D)all of the above