Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The Price/Value Chasm
Although many experts agree that water is undervalued across the
United States, the reasons for it vary.
“It costs more to have cell phone service than it does to get water,”
adds Sandy Gaines, water resources expert and director of the Utton
Transboundary Resources Center at the University of New Mexico.
The public health equation.
“As long as people turn on that tap and
water runs, it's an 'out of sight, out of mind' issue for many,” says
Huff. “It's similar to electricity—as long as it's on, you pay your bills,
and don't think much about it. The difference is that water is a ne-
cessity of life. It's a public health issue around the world. When we
turn on our tap, we don't worry that we're going to get dysentery or
cholera or anything else from our water. . . . But do we value that?”
Obviously, says Huff, we all want safe drinking water, so we think
of it to some extent. But do we see the big picture and consider the
water supply globally? For instance, he asks, “Do we look at U.N.
statistics as to how many children die every day from waterborne
diseases? We don't really think about how vital public water systems
are in the United States to maintaining public health.”
Haves and have-nots.
Utilities have done too good a job in pro-
viding a very good service at a very low price, says El Paso's Ed
Archuleta. “The price of water has to be valued and recognized. The
cheap water is gone, and people will have to pay more in the future.”
Archuleta, like many water offi cials across the country, advo-
cates public education initiatives to help consumers better under-
stand their community's water system. To that end, many utilities
provide education programs that start in preschools and actively
promote water awareness and conservation at all levels.
Why not just raise rates?
If water is so undervalued and under-
priced, why not simply raise the rates? That's not necessarily the
best approach in the short term or across the board, experts agree.
People don't seem to mind paying for a bottle of water, but when
you raise their water bill $1 or $2, the wheels come off, says Archuleta.
Pricing varies widely and is hotly debated, says Jeffrey Kightlinger,
general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern
California, a water wholesaler. “Many economists say water is signifi -
cantly undervalued in the way we price it,” says Kightlinger. “Typically,
