Pollution Abatement as a Barrier to Entry

With the dramatic increase in federal and state environmental regulation in the 1970s, the cost of compliance also rose. While compliance costs have been discussed elsewhere, the implications for the competitiveness of markets have been evaluated using case studies of specific law changes and specific industries. This study examines the role of environmental regulations as barriers to entry using a panel of industries over ten years. The results indicate that environmental costs increase the value of q for the top quartile of firms, which suggests that compliance cost constitutes a barrier to entry and creates rents for larger existing firms.