The Economics of Livestock Waste and Its Regulation

This article develops a spatial model of regional livestock production and three attendant environmental effects: spills from animal waste stores;nutrient runoff due to the application of manure to croplands; and direct ambient pollution, including odors, pests, and gases. Assuming that neither environmental outcomes nor operators' manure-spreading practices can be monitored and regulated, constrained efficient production arrangements and waste-handling practices are described. The efficiency effects of several regulatory policies are then explored, including (a) scale regulations that limit animal inventories, (b) chemical fertilizer taxes, and (c) waste storage and handling standards that affect storm protections and manure transport. Copyright 2000, Oxford University Press.