Aquanomics: Water, Economics and Property Rights

Yasmin Valdez  | 09 de noviembre de 2018  | Vistas: 49

If there was no water, there would be no life on earth; besides drinking it to survive, individuals have many other uses for this resource. Randy Simmons presents how water markets work in the United States as well as the conflicts associated with Government and the environment.

Simmons shares the problem of not having a clear owner of water, using the specific case between Utah and Nevada, states that are separated by an aquifer. Also, the two approaches to solve this dispute through economics and politics. Along he includes how Western water law works, consequences for the environment, what is a beneficial use and who determines that standard.

If you have clear rights markets would work, if governments allow them to”.

Randy explains the benefits of making deals where rights are clear and solve conflicts with private means. Furthermore, he compares the types of markets in the United States, voluntary and Government created, using as reference his experience with regulations and trade.

The people who need or want the water more than others can buy it, you can have an active market, but once it’s adjudicated is a mess.”

He concludes commenting on adjudication and the markets created by the government, where one of his examples is Chino Basin Watermaster, whose objective is to work collaboratively to maximize the benefits from the Chino groundwater basin.

Now watch, Aquanomics: Water Markets and the Environment