Safety effects of property rights contract changes : evidence from field experience in fisheries

I measure the effect of contract changes on selected fishery resources in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). I apply the difference-in-difference approach to commercial fishery panel data. My cross-sectional units use the red snapper and grouper-tilefish fisheries in the GoM as treatment groups and the fisheries from same group of species in the U.S. South Atlantic (SA) as the control group. The results show that the grouper-tilefish individual fishing quota has improved commercial fishing safety in the GoM. The modest effect from the red snapper individual fishing quota program seems to be due to interrelatedness and economies of scope stemming from the multispecies nature of the reef fish fishery in the GoM.