Question

Suppose the Alaskan king crab harvest is unregulated and any person with a crab boat and some diesel fuel can go offshore, lower a crab pot, and harvest king crab. As a result, this common resource is overused. Which policy choice might produce the socially optimal king crab harvest

Answer 1

Answer: A. Alaska auctions a limited number of licenses to harvest king crab.

Explanation:

The options include:

A. Alaska auctions a limited number of licenses to harvest king crab.

B. The U.S. and Canadian governments remove trade barriers, which allows for more trade of products like king crab.

C. Alaska removes taxes on diesel fuel, which lowers the price of diesel.

D. Alaska subsidizes the purchase of crab boats.

The socially optimal level of output will be achieved when there's allocative efficiency. It is the level whereby market failure is curtailed.

The policy choice that might produce the socially optimal king crab harvest is for Alaska to auction a limited number of licenses to harvest king crab.

This will help in the reduction at which the resource is overused as there'll be regulation and reduction in the number of person that can harvest king crab.