Sustainible water use in cities: water tariff as tool for consumption control
Keywords:
urban water management, environmental economy, water tariff, water rate, environmental sustainability, Water Framework Directive
Abstract
The Water Framework Directive requires the adoption of a tariff system that recovers the costs of water resources and the establishment of national water-pricing policies that help to achieve a sustainable water use. Water rates (tariffs) should be used as an auxiliary tool for consumption control, seeking for efficiency and a sustainable resource use. In this research, we studied the characteristics of the existing rates in seven Spanish cities, analyzing the behavior of consumption of domestic water during the period 2003-2010, in order to check whether the current Spanish rates conforms to the state of resources and the objectives of the Directive. The main conclusion of our work is that the current system has lost its effectiveness as a control consumption tool, making it necessary to rethink the pricing policy and a new tariff system in Spain.Downloads
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Published
2012-10-23
How to Cite
Sánchez García V. E. y Blanco Jiménez F. J. (2012). Sustainible water use in cities: water tariff as tool for consumption control. Observatorio Medioambiental, 15, 35-59. https://doi.org/10.5209/rev_OBMD.2012.v15.40331
Issue
Section
Concepto y método
License
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