Firms in a polluting industry can be classified in two groups: newer firms with a cleaner technology that can abate pollution at a lower marginal cost MCLA = (1/2)aL and older firms with dirtier MCHA = aH, where ai is the level of abatement undertaken by firms of type i = L, H. The social marginal benefit of abating pollution from this particular industry is MBA= 120 - A, where A is the aggregate level of abatement in that industry. Suppose that in order to avoid the costly obtention of disaggregate information about individual firms' costs, the government just implements a uniform standard aui  = A* / 2. Is this allocation efficient? If not, what is the deadweight loss?

Microeconomic Theory
12th Edition
ISBN:9781337517942
Author:NICHOLSON
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Chapter19: Externalities And Public Goods
Section: Chapter Questions
Problem 19.9P
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Firms in a polluting industry can be classified in two groups: newer firms with a cleaner technology that can abate pollution at a lower marginal cost MCLA = (1/2)aL and older firms with dirtier MCHA = aH, where ai is the level of abatement undertaken by firms of type i = L, H. The social marginal benefit of abating pollution from this particular industry is MBA= 120 - A, where A is the aggregate level of abatement in that industry.

Suppose that in order to avoid the costly obtention of disaggregate information about individual firms' costs, the government just implements a uniform standard aui  = A* / 2. Is this allocation efficient? If not, what is the deadweight loss?

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