Rural Water Use and the Environment: The Role of Market Mechanisms

Contents

Preliminaries
Cover, Copyright, Terms of reference, Foreword, Contents, Acknowledgments, Abbreviations and explanations, Glossary, Key points, Overview, Recommendations and findings

1 Introduction
1.1 Background
1.2 Scope of study
1.3 The Commission’s approach
1.4 Conduct of the study
1.5 Report structure

2 Key factors affecting water availability
2.1 Identifying key factors affecting water availability
2.2 How do these key factors affect water availability?
2.3 What is to be done?
2.4 Conclusion

3 Improving entitlement regimes
3.1 Simplifying water entitlements
3.2 Unbundling delivery capacity
3.3 Improving intertemporal water-use choices
3.4 Security of entitlements

4 Reducing constraints on water trade
4.1 Nonregulatory constraints
4.2 Restrictions on who can participate
4.3 Constraints on trade in seasonal allocations
4.4 Constraints on trade in water entitlements
4.5 Constraints specific to trading groundwater
4.6 Implications of freeing up water trade

5 Other factors affecting farmers’ decisions on water use and trade
5.1 Information for water-use decisions
5.2 The efficiency of rural water supply
5.3 Government policies

6 Externalities, assessment criteria and governance issues
6.1 Environmental externalities
6.2 Assessment framework
6.3 Governance framework

7 Altered river flow externalities
7.1 Environmental changes and externalities associated with altered river flows
7.2 Current and emerging approaches to addressing the effects of altered river flows
7.3 Design issues

8 Assessing market mechanisms for altered river flows
8.1 Assessment of market mechanisms to procure water and water-related products
8.2 Other market mechanisms to address externalities from altered river flows
8.3 Establishing sourcing agencies

9 Salinity externalities
9.1 Salinity
9.2 Policy context
9.3 Design issues

10 Assessing market mechanisms for irrigation salinity
10.1 Reducing the further emergence of irrigation salinity
10.2 Disposing of salt

A Consultation

B Rural water use, supply and trade
B.1 Water use in Australia
B.2 Water availability and supply
B.3 Water trade

C Water trade and exit fees
C.1 Benefits from trading water entitlements
C.2 Exit fees
C.3 Exit fees constrain trade
C.4 Exit fees reduce welfare
C.5 Sensitivity of results to water demand characteristics
C.6 Differing exit fees between exporting regions
C.7 Empirical analysis of efficiency effects of exit fees
C.8 Concluding remarks

D Effects of a tax on water use on price and quantity of water
D.1 A uniform tax on all water users
D.2 Differentiated taxes on water use
D.3 Charges on water traded out of an irrigation district

References