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Abstract
Within the EU, it is agreed that watershed-based management of water quality problems is likely
to be more economically efficient compared to existing institutional arrangements. Watershed
authorities, assigned under the European Water Framework Directive, do however lack financial
resources for policy implementation. EU funding for agri-environmental measures is mainly
channeled through CAP via national governments to the farmers. In this paper, a mechanism for
allocating international funds to watershed authorities is investigated assuming that there is a risk
of moral hazard on behalf of the regional authority. The assumed purpose of the funding is to
reduce nitrogen loads to the Baltic Proper, and the implications of uncertainty about the risk of
climate change are investigated. Results shows that the risk premium associated with the presence
of moral hazard can be high if there is a high likelihood of climate change and marginal damage
is increasing rapidly in loads.