Measuring Fishing Capacity When Some Outputs Are Undesirable

We estimate capacity when firms produce both desirable and undesirable outputs using a directional distance function model, and a hyperbolic model. We impose different assumptions regarding disposability of undesirable outputs in both models, and vary the direction of vectors in the directional distance function model. We then apply the methods to data from fishing vessels operating in the northwest Atlantic Ocean during a 3-year period. Results differ from previous studies that examined technical efficiency for similar vessels and show that it is difficult for fishing vessels to reduce undesirable outputs without reducing desirable outputs.

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