Abstract
A scarce good can only be obtained by giving up something else or by paying a positive price for it. In most urban areas, water is a scarce good and is therefore subject to the laws and principles of economics. In particular, the quantity of water taken from the market by any given buyer or group of buyers is influenced by the price that must be paid. The price of water, in its most general sense, includes not only monetary payments, but the time and energy expended to obtain that water. For example, if a person must drive or walk some distance to buy water, the price includes the value of time spent as well as the monetary payment. As urban water becomes increasingly scarce, price can be used to allocate its use efficiently among its many competing end uses. Prices can also be used to encourage the meeting of community social goals with regard to the availability and use of water.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Agthe, D.E. and R.B. Billings, 1997. “Equity and Conservation Pricing Policy for A Government Run Water Utility,” Journal of Water Supply Research Technology-Aqua, 46 (5):252–260.
Black and Veatch, 1997. Arizona Water/Wastewater Survey 1997, Phoenix, Arizona.
Black and Veatch, 1995. Arizona Water/Wastewater Survey, 1995, Phoenix, Arizona.
Black and Veatch, 1993. Arizona Water/Wastewater Survey, 1993, Phoenix, Arizona.
Haddad, B.M., 2000. “Economic Incentives for Water Conservation on the Monterey Peninsula: the Market Proposal,” Journal of the American Water Resources Association, 36(1): 1–13.
Johnson, D., 1988. “Down the Drain,” The Los Angeles Times, Feb. 2, Sect 5:1.
Martin, W.M., N.H. Laney, and A.W. Griffin, 1983. Saving Water in a Desert City, Resources for the Future, Inc., Baltimore.
Timmins, C. 2002. “Measuring the Dynamic Efficiency of Regulator’s Performances: Municipal Water Utilities in the Arid West,” Econometrica, 70(2) :603–629.
Suggestions for Additional Reading
Agthe, D.E., and R.B. Billings, 1987. “Equity, Price Elasticity and Household Income Under Increasing Block Rates for Water,” American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 46 (3):201–212.
Billings, R.B., and D.E. Agthe, 1980. “Price Elasticities for Water: A Case of Increasing Block Rates,” Land Economics, 56(l):73–84.
Billings, R.B. and C.V. Jones, 1996. Chapter 9, Forecasting Urban Water Demand, American Water Works, Association, Denver, Colorado.
Foster, H., and B. Beattie, 1979. “Urban Residential Demand for Water in the United States,” Land Economics, 55(l):43–58.
Haddad, B.M., Rivers of Gold: Designing Markets to Allocate Water in California, Island Press, Washington, D.C.
Howe, C.W., and F.P. Linaweaver, 1967. “The Impact of Price on Residential Water Demand and Its Relation to System Design and Price Structure,” Water Resources Research, 3(1): 13–32.
Mansfield, E., 1994, Applied Microeconomics 2nd. Edition, W.W. Norton and Company, New York, New York.
Martin, W.E., and J.F. Thomas, 1986. “Policy Relevance in Studies of Urban Residential Water Demand,” Water Resources Research, 22(13):1735–1741.
Neufeld, J.L., and J.M. Watts, 1981. “Inverted Block or Lifeline Rates and Microefficiency in the Consumption of Electricity,” Energy Economics, 3 (2):113–121.
Stigler, G., 1966. The Theory of Price, The MacMillan Company, New York.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2003 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Agthe, D.E., Billings, R.B. (2003). Price Rationing. In: Agthe, D.E., Billings, R.B., Buras, N. (eds) Managing Urban Water Supply. Water Science and Technology Library, vol 46. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-0237-9_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-0237-9_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-6470-7
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-0237-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive