Recent studies in water management policy point to insufficient recognition of water as a scarce commodity and the failure of pricing policies to account for the full economic costs of its production and supply. These costs include opportunity costs related to alternative uses of water; user costs associated with managing a scarce resource; and costs of externalities such as ground water depletion, pollution of waterways, and greenhouse gas emissions. Existing cost recovery based pricing policies may lead to inefficiencies such as excess consumption, under-investment in water infrastructure, and unnecessary subsidisation. Water scarcity can be managed in several ways. We can increase supply by investment in additional harvesting capabilities or new technologies such as desalination; we can constrain consumption so that existing supplies last longer; or we can use water in more efficient ways. As a short term measure, most countries adopt water restrictions when supplies are at critical levels. In the future, as urban population growth continues, harvesting of storm water and reuse of grey water may become part of a sustainable water management strategy. Water trading can be used to move water to where the marginal benefits are highest. Considerable water savings are possible through the use of more efficient industrial and domestic appliances. There is evidence in some countries that higher water tariffs have reduced consumption and promoted awareness of conservation. If we accept that water is an economic good, then we need to understand the costs related to its production, the patterns of its use, and the benefits received by different users. This thesis is an examination of theoretical and applied aspects of urban water pricing based on analysis of cost, demand, and welfare. We present theoretical models of cost that include economies of scale as a parameter, and a model of water demand by households with heterogeneous preferences. We determine marginal cost at the efficient level of output based on a partial equilibrium of supply and demand. We also show that when water is produced with increasing returns to scale, the efficient price will be insufficient to recover all costs, and therefore a form of second best pricing is required. We contrast conventional notions about water suppliers being cost minimisers with an alternative frontier model of cost efficiency. Two case studies examine the provision of water services under different forms of ownership. The first case study examines the provision of water to domestic households in the state of Victoria, Australia. The second case study examines the supply of water to the residents of Manila, one of the world’s largest cities that privatised its water service in 1997 under a form of concession agreement. A third case study derives an efficient cost frontier for a sample of water utilities from Asia and Australia and proposes a form of best practice pricing. The thesis concludes with a summary of the main results and policy conclusions, and ideas for future research. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1289196 / Thesis (PhD) -- School of Economics, 2007

This thesis on water and social activism in Canada is a journey into the realm of shared social understanding. Water is too precious to all forms of life to simply permit commodification for the benefit of a few at the expense of the many. The Sun Belt case adjudicated under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) when compared with what prevailed under previous Canadian national law reveals severe limits to state sovereignty. A high measure of support has already been manifest around concerns and considerations which pertain to water and the potential for the growth of social activism with reference to water may well be unprecedented in Canada. There are fundamental inequalities found within the Sun Belt case. Current international trade policy coupled with private banking practices does not value the principles of sustainability, equality and justice because it is committed to the commodification of the “commons”. This thesis uses a variety of sources to oppose the present discourses followed by governments according to the doctrines found in the study of classical economics within a capitalist context.

This thesis on water and social activism in Canada is a journey into the realm of shared social understanding. Water is too precious to all forms of life to simply permit commodification for the benefit of a few at the expense of the many. The Sun Belt case adjudicated under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) when compared with what prevailed under previous Canadian national law reveals severe limits to state sovereignty. A high measure of support has already been manifest around concerns and considerations which pertain to water and the potential for the growth of social activism with reference to water may well be unprecedented in Canada. There are fundamental inequalities found within the Sun Belt case. Current international trade policy coupled with private banking practices does not value the principles of sustainability, equality and justice because it is committed to the commodification of the “commons”. This thesis uses a variety of sources to oppose the present discourses followed by governments according to the doctrines found in the study of classical economics within a capitalist context.

Most of the US population is served by large-scale, centralized drinking water, wastewater, and storm water systems built in the late 19th and early 20th century. Multi-trillion dollar investments are needed over the next 20 years to restore failing infrastructure, expand service areas to accommodate growing populations, and meet rising service provision costs driven by environmental and regulatory factors. A formal plan that recognizes the socioeconomic complexity of water services provision in the US is needed to guide these investments. Rising residential water charges over the last 20 years have raised concerns about household affordability of basic water services. Meanwhile, anywhere from 9 to 45 million people (4-28% of the US population) are affected by health-based drinking water quality violations each year. New technologies and evolving social goals have the potential to reshape the sector as we know it. This dissertation is a first attempt at synthesizing the sub questions around which spending is most critical and how rates can be structured for more equitable outcomes. Research on the determinants of historic charge growth has been hindered by a lack of long-term longitudinal data. Unlike energy and telecom utilities, less than 20% of all drinking water utilities (primarily the investor-owned utilities) are economically regulated by public utility commissions. Absent local requirements, municipal water systems whose operating revenues are insufficient to cover operating expenses can make up for budget shortfalls with net transfers from the city general fund. We combine 10 American Water Works Association (AWWA) rate surveys to construct an 18-year unbalanced panel of charges at 446 large utilities (i.e., population served ≥10,000), revealing elevated 2-year compound annual charge growth (CAGR) between 2008 and 2012. We estimate heterogenous impacts of the Great Recession on CAGR with an event study design of 204 utilities, comparing those with 2007 operating ratios below 1.2 (PCR) to those with ratios of ≥ 1.2 (FCR). Despite having the same cumulative 18-year CAGR, 2009-2013 CAGR was 3.9, 5.2, 5.2, and 5.7 percentage points per year higher at PCR utilities for 500, 1,000, 1,500, and 3,000 cf/month, respectively. Our findings demonstrate that large utilities who were likely relying on the general fund at the start of the Great Recession had to sharply increase their charges in the short-term to make up for decreased availability of that funding source. This indicates more immediate affordability challenges at utilities with operating ratios below 1.2 in the event of a similar economic shock. Additional data is needed to evaluate generalizability of these results to smaller systems. Willingness to pay (WTP) for improved drinking water quality is estimated based on the cost of household averting behaviors taken during violations. While buying bottled water is a well-documented reaction to these violations, demographic and socioeconomic differences in water intake, preferred water supply alternatives, and shopping behavior suggest heterogeneity in the timing and form (e.g. soda vs bottled water) of household responses. We quantify this heterogeneity with an event study design using monthly household purchases of soda, water, and juice from the Nielsen Homescan Consumer Panel Dataset from 2004 through 2017. We find that, while households spend an average 14.8% more on bottled water during a month with a nitrate violation, these responses are concentrated in non-hispanic (NHP) Black and NHP Other households below the poverty threshold. Bottled water spending is 91.8% higher than usual in violation months for the former group and 90.0% higher than normal in the month after a violation for the latter. A simultaneous 103% increase in juice spending results in a 30.6% increase in combined beverage spending for NHP Black households below the poverty line in a violation month. Meanwhile, an 85.3% increase in soda spending at NHP Other households drives a 58.9% increase in combined beverage spending in months with a violation and a 134% increase in soda spending, along with increased bottled water purchases, results in a 106% increase in combined beverage spending the month after a violation. NHP Black households with an IPR between 1 and 2 spend 129% more on soda during a violation. Our results indicate that studies focused only on bottled water purchases have systematically undercounted the effects on Hispanic, NHP Black, and Other NHP American households below the poverty threshold in their measure of WTP for improved drinking water quality or for the true cost of violations. Additional analysis is needed to determine if the tap water substitutions made by Hispanic households and households below the poverty threshold are increasing their overall sugary beverage consumption, which can have negative long-term health effects that are also not being considered. Finally, we explore the ongoing implementation of onsite and distributed water reuse systems (ODWRS) to better understand how sociotechnical transitions can be supported when they are deemed to be a socially optimal solution. ODWRS collect previously discarded water flows as alternative water sources (e.g. rainwater, stormwater, greywater, wastewater) from one or more buildings and treat that water close to the point of generation or point of use to a quality deemed safe for its intended end use. Widespread adoption of ODWRS requires both acceptance of new technologies (e.g., water treatment, engineering) and alterations to established social systems(e.g., norms, stakeholder engagement, regulations). This has often been discussed as a single transition for all types of systems at the same time. However, the types of ODWRS being implemented in different areas are not the same. We compile and analyze the first national dataset of system-level information on ODWRS to identify clusters of system types associated with specific drivers. We find evidence of multiple transitions based on the combination of original source contamination level and end use application contact level. Low-contamination, low-contact are almost in the final stage of sociotechnical transition for many locations. Many areas with water supply constraints have already begun the transition for high-contamination to low- or medium-contact systems. Wastewater ODWRS are being implemented in places with effluent disposal constraints and stormwater ODWRS are being implemented in areas with combined sewers or high flood risk, though usually only for low-contact end uses.

Orientador: Jose Euclides Stipp Paterniani / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura Urbanismo / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-11T05:52:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva_Gilmarda_D.pdf: 1379544 bytes, checksum: 0d9b64a9ed4597bda7a5c803f18d9c33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Hoje é de vital importância se criar alternativas que levem ao racionamento ou economia de água potável, e uma dessas medidas é fazer uso da água de chuva disponível na natureza. Para tanto, foi necessário avaliar mediante estudo de caso a possibilidade da economia de água, aproveitando-se da água de chuva de maneira qualitativa e econômica num complexo industrial e escolar. O complexo industrial escolhido foi a Fábrica de mancais de deslizamento Grafimec, localizada no município de Araras/SP e a Escola Estadual Dom Idílio José Soares de Limeira/SP que se caracteriza pela formação educacional de jovens. Realizou-se a coleta de água de chuva na Fábrica Grafimec ao longo de um ano, em 4 pontos distintos (telhado, calha, cisterna e cisterna filtrada) para avaliar os aspectos físico-químicos e bacteriológicas dessa água. Uma vez que não existe uma Portaria ou Resolução que discorra sobre o tema aproveitamento de água de chuva, foram adotadas para efeito de comparação dos resultados qualitativos às Resoluções 274 e 357 mais à Portaria 518 do Ministério da Saúde. Paralelamente foi realizado um estudo econômico da Fábrica Grafimec juntamente com à Escola Estadual, para verificar o que um sistema de aproveitamento de água de chuva pode representar em termos de ganhos ambientais para às futuras gerações. Apesar de existirem contaminações bacteriológicas quando os resultados foram suficientemente comparados com a Portaria 518, a qualidade da água atendeu à exigência de uso da Fábrica Grafimec de Araras/SP. A utilização da cisterna nos dois estudos de caso proporcionou uma economia significativa de água da rede pública, ou seja, água essa que sairia dos nossos rios para atividades que não haveria necessidade, tais como: descarga de vasos sanitários, lavagens de piso, irrigação de jardins e plantas, dentre outras. Esse projeto de pesquisa contribuiu de maneira significativa para que novas pesquisas possam surgir no âmbito do aproveitamento da água de chuva, baseado nas práticas adotadas pela Fábrica e pela Escola / Abstract: Today it is essential to find out new alternatives for rationing or saving drinking water, and one of them is to make use of the rainwater available in nature. To achieve this, it was necessary to evaluate through a case study the possibility of water saving, by recovering rainwater with economy and quality in an industry and in a school. The industrial complex chosen was the sliding bearings factory called Grafimec, located in the town of Araras, SP, and the State Public School Dom Idílio José Soares in the town of Limeira, SP, where the activities aim at young people¿s education. The rainwater collection was done at Grafimec factory at 4 different spots (roof, spout, cistern and filter-cistern) to evaluate the physicalchemical and bacteriological aspects of this water. Since there is no Decree or Resolution on the rainwater recovery theme, for the purpose of comparing quality results, Resolutions 274 and 357, and also Decree no. 518 of the Health Ministry were adopted. At the same time, an economics study of Grafimec Factory and of the public school was carried out to assess how much benefit can be obtained in terms of environment for future generations. Although there was bacteriological contamination, when the results were sufficiently compared with Decree no. 518, the water quality met the use requirements established by Grafimec Factory in Araras, SP. The use of the cistern in both case studies provided a significant economy of the public water, which means that some of the water that would be taken from our rivers to activities where it was not essential, such as: toilet flushing, floor washing, gardens and plants irrigation, among others, was saved. This research project has significantly contributed towards the start of many other research studies in the field of rainwater recovery, based on the actions adopted by the factory and the school / Doutorado / Saneamento e Ambiente / Doutor em Engenharia Civil

CAPES / A escassez, deterioração da qualidade dos mananciais e o aumento da demanda por água tem sido problema global. Diante desses problemas o uso de fontes alternativas é citado como solução, com destaque para o aproveitamento de água da chuva. Em alguns locais, a água da chuva escoada de telhados tem sido utilizada para fins potáveis e não potáveis e a água da chuva in natura tem qualidade superior ao de águas superficiais e subterrâneas. Embora a água da chuva tenha qualidade físico-química dentro dos padrões de potabilidade, é necessário melhorar sua qualidade para utilizá-la. Assim neste trabalho é avaliado o tratamento da água da chuva por filtro ascendente (volume de 35,4 L) com meio suporte de 0,50 m de seixo rolado e camada filtrante composta de 0,15m de brita, 0,25 m de areia e 0,55 m de carvão ativado e desinfecção por radiação UV. Para melhorar a qualidade da água antes de chegar ao filtro foi instalado um dispositivo de primeiro descarte com volume de 41,4 L. A avaliação do tratamento foi realizada através da análise dos parâmetros pH, temperatura, cor, oxigênio dissolvido, turbidez, amônia, nitrito, nitrato, fosfato, sulfato, DQO e coliformes. Os valores médios obtidos para os parâmetros físico-químicos da água após o tratamento foram de 6,7 para o pH, 22,3 °C para a temperatura, 12,5 UPC para cor, 6,7 mg/L para OD, 0,5 UNT para turbidez, 0,2 mg/L para amônia, 0,01 mg/L para nitrito, 1,7 mg/L para nitrato, 0,2 mg/L para fosfato, 0,7 mg/L para sulfato e 1,3 mg/L para DQO. O tratamento proposto obteve resultados de eficiência para remoção de cor de 22,4%, turbidez de 28,6%, amônia de 50,0%, nitrito de 23,1%, nitrato de 37,0%, fosfato de 95,1% sulfato de 41,7% e DQO de 66,7% e reduziu o numero de microrganismos para um valor menor que o limite detectável do método de análise. Todos os valores médios obtidos para os parâmetros físico-químicos atendem aos padrões exigidos pela portaria 2914/2011 do Ministério da Saúde para água potável. / The scarcity, quality deterioration of water sources and increasing demand for water has been global problem. Faced with these problems the use of alternative sources is cited as a solution, especially taking advantage of rainwater. In some places, rainwater drained roofs have been used for potable and non-potable purposes and rainwater in nature has superior quality to the surface water and groundwater. Although rainwater has physicochemical quality within the potability standards, it is necessary to improve their quality to use it. Thus this work is evaluated treatment of rainwater by upflow filter (35,4 L volume) with support means of 0,50 m of Boulder and filter layer of 0,15 m of crushed stone, 0,25 m of sand and 0,55 m of activated carbon and UV disinfection. To enhance the water quality before reaching the filter was installed a first-flush device with volume of 41,4 L. The characterization of the water before and after treatment was performed through analysis of parameters pH, temperature, color, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate, sulphate, COD and coliforms. The mean values obtained for the physicochemical parameters of the water after treatment were 6,7 to pH 22,3 °C for temperature, 12,5 UPC for color, 6,7 mg/L to OD, 0,5 NTU for turbidity, 0,2mg/L for ammonia, 0,01 mg/L for nitrite, 1,7 mg/L for nitrate, 0,2 mg/L for phosphate,0,7 mg/L for sulfate and 1,3 mg/L for COD. The obtained results proposed treatment for color removal efficiency of 22,4%, haze 28,6%, 50,0% ammonia, 23,1% nitrite, nitrate 37,0%, Phosphate 95,1%, sulfate 41,7% and COD of 66,7% and reduced the number of microorganisms to a value less than the detectable limit of the analysis method. All mean values obtained for the physicochemical parameters meet the standards required by the Order 2914/2011 of the Ministry of Health for drinking water.

CAPES / A escassez, deterioração da qualidade dos mananciais e o aumento da demanda por água tem sido problema global. Diante desses problemas o uso de fontes alternativas é citado como solução, com destaque para o aproveitamento de água da chuva. Em alguns locais, a água da chuva escoada de telhados tem sido utilizada para fins potáveis e não potáveis e a água da chuva in natura tem qualidade superior ao de águas superficiais e subterrâneas. Embora a água da chuva tenha qualidade físico-química dentro dos padrões de potabilidade, é necessário melhorar sua qualidade para utilizá-la. Assim neste trabalho é avaliado o tratamento da água da chuva por filtro ascendente (volume de 35,4 L) com meio suporte de 0,50 m de seixo rolado e camada filtrante composta de 0,15m de brita, 0,25 m de areia e 0,55 m de carvão ativado e desinfecção por radiação UV. Para melhorar a qualidade da água antes de chegar ao filtro foi instalado um dispositivo de primeiro descarte com volume de 41,4 L. A avaliação do tratamento foi realizada através da análise dos parâmetros pH, temperatura, cor, oxigênio dissolvido, turbidez, amônia, nitrito, nitrato, fosfato, sulfato, DQO e coliformes. Os valores médios obtidos para os parâmetros físico-químicos da água após o tratamento foram de 6,7 para o pH, 22,3 °C para a temperatura, 12,5 UPC para cor, 6,7 mg/L para OD, 0,5 UNT para turbidez, 0,2 mg/L para amônia, 0,01 mg/L para nitrito, 1,7 mg/L para nitrato, 0,2 mg/L para fosfato, 0,7 mg/L para sulfato e 1,3 mg/L para DQO. O tratamento proposto obteve resultados de eficiência para remoção de cor de 22,4%, turbidez de 28,6%, amônia de 50,0%, nitrito de 23,1%, nitrato de 37,0%, fosfato de 95,1% sulfato de 41,7% e DQO de 66,7% e reduziu o numero de microrganismos para um valor menor que o limite detectável do método de análise. Todos os valores médios obtidos para os parâmetros físico-químicos atendem aos padrões exigidos pela portaria 2914/2011 do Ministério da Saúde para água potável. / The scarcity, quality deterioration of water sources and increasing demand for water has been global problem. Faced with these problems the use of alternative sources is cited as a solution, especially taking advantage of rainwater. In some places, rainwater drained roofs have been used for potable and non-potable purposes and rainwater in nature has superior quality to the surface water and groundwater. Although rainwater has physicochemical quality within the potability standards, it is necessary to improve their quality to use it. Thus this work is evaluated treatment of rainwater by upflow filter (35,4 L volume) with support means of 0,50 m of Boulder and filter layer of 0,15 m of crushed stone, 0,25 m of sand and 0,55 m of activated carbon and UV disinfection. To enhance the water quality before reaching the filter was installed a first-flush device with volume of 41,4 L. The characterization of the water before and after treatment was performed through analysis of parameters pH, temperature, color, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate, sulphate, COD and coliforms. The mean values obtained for the physicochemical parameters of the water after treatment were 6,7 to pH 22,3 °C for temperature, 12,5 UPC for color, 6,7 mg/L to OD, 0,5 NTU for turbidity, 0,2mg/L for ammonia, 0,01 mg/L for nitrite, 1,7 mg/L for nitrate, 0,2 mg/L for phosphate,0,7 mg/L for sulfate and 1,3 mg/L for COD. The obtained results proposed treatment for color removal efficiency of 22,4%, haze 28,6%, 50,0% ammonia, 23,1% nitrite, nitrate 37,0%, Phosphate 95,1%, sulfate 41,7% and COD of 66,7% and reduced the number of microorganisms to a value less than the detectable limit of the analysis method. All mean values obtained for the physicochemical parameters meet the standards required by the Order 2914/2011 of the Ministry of Health for drinking water.

<p><p><p>L’eau est vitale dans toutes les économies. C’est à cause de son rôle prépondérant pour la survie que les tensions politiques autour des basins et des fleuves internationaux tendent à être particulièrement très épineuses. Actuellement, la mauvaise répartition de cette ressource pose un sérieux problème du fait qu’elle est gérée en fonction de stratégies politiques et non en fonction des réalités hydrologiques régionales. Nous expliquons à l’aide de la « Enhanced Power Matrix Model » (La Matrice de FREY et NAFF améliorée) que les tensions autour des bassins et des fleuves au Moyen – Orient n’aboutiront pas à des conflits armés mais à une situation de non guerre et de non paix, très peu propice à la coopération. Pour sortir de cette situation de blocage, nous proposons aux décideurs politiques et aux négociateurs, sur base de l’article 6 de la Convention de New York de 1997 sur « les cours d’eau internationaux à d’autres usages que la navigation », un modèle de répartition de la ressource hydrique entre les différents riverains d’un cours d’eau international. Face à cette situation, beaucoup de pays de la région tentent de mettre de façon unilatérale des modèles de gestion macroéconomique :réduction de la demande ou l’augmentation de l’offre de l’eau. Ces modèles se heurtent à des obstacles de nature économique, politique, sociologique et culturelle. Dans un objectif de conception de nouveaux modèles de gestion de l’eau, nous proposons un modèle coopératif, les projets de transfert inter – bassin, pour faire face à la mauvaise répartition de cette ressource au Moyen – Orient. <p>Nous appuyons sur la méthodologie multicritère d’aide à la décision pour opérationnaliser l’article 6 de la Convention de New York et pouvoir comparer les différents projets de transfert inter - bassin. Cette méthodologie fait appel à un logiciel d’aide à la décision « Décision Lab 2000 ». Le commentaire des résultats fournis par ce logiciel nous a permit de tirer l’enseignement suivant :seuls les projets qui présentent une faisabilité politique élevée arrivent en tête de classement. Ce qui nous fait dire que la question de l’eau au Moyen – Orient est, avant tout, une question politique. <p> / Doctorat en Sciences économiques et de gestion / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished