The economics of optimal urban groundwater management in southwestern USA

Groundwater serves as the primary water source for approximately 80% of public water systems in the United States, and for many more as a secondary source. Traditionally management relies on groundwater to meet rising demand by increasing supply, but climate uncertainty and population growth require more judicious management to achieve efficiency and sustainability. Over-pumping leads to groundwater overdraft and jeopardizes the ability of future users to depend on the resource. Optimal urban groundwater pumping can play a role in solving this conundrum. This paper investigates to what extent and under what circumstances controlled pumping improves social welfare. It considers management in a hydro-economic framework and finds the optimal pumping path and the optimal price path. These allow for the identification of the social benefit of controlled pumping, and the scarcity rent, which is one tool to sustainably manage groundwater resources. The model is numerically illustrated with a case study from Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA). The Albuquerque results indicate that, in the presence of strong demand growth, controlled pumping improves social welfare by 22%, extends use of the resource, and provides planners with a mechanism to advance the economic sustainability of groundwater.     

Groundwater under stress: the importance of management

The most significant water problem facing the United States and the world is the scarcity of water. Scarcity is expected to intensify during the twenty-first century due to global population growth, economic growth and the need to protect environmental assets. In many regions, climate change may cause scarcity to become more acute. Groundwater has the capacity to buffer extreme hydrologic events because recharge is not directly tied to precipitation and run-off events. Groundwater storage offers many opportunities to increase storage and enhance the general water supply. The value of groundwater will increase as scarcity intensifies and effective groundwater management will be required if groundwater values are to be reaped. Effective groundwater management will require attention to certain well-established economic principles. Persistent overdraft is always self terminating. Individualistically competitive modes of extraction are inefficient. It is virtually always cheaper to prevent pollution in the first place than to remediate it. Groundwater management schemes appear to be most effective when they are locally developed and managed. Such schemes can regulate extractions and/or recharge either directly or indirectly. Evidence from the United States suggests that direct regulations can be made to work if they focus on recharge and developing supplementary sources of water. Evidence from South Asia suggests that regulation of extractions and provision of recharge water is most effective when indirect measures are used in which groundwater and ancillary variables such as electricity are co-managed. This evidence suggests that as supplementary sources of supply become scarce, innovative and indirect groundwater management schemes are likely to become more common.     

Conflicts and water governance challenge in irrigated areas of semi-arid regions

Agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions faces two of the principal global challenges: sustainability and water scarcity in the context of climate changes. To overcome the water scarcity constraint, Tunisia adopted different strategies and policies. Since 1989, it has embarked on a policy of decentralization and participatory water management in irrigated areas “IA.” This policy has led to the state disengagement in favor of collective water management. Since then, water management becomes a task of irrigator associations. These associations have experienced a series of transformations ranging from “collective interest associations: CIA” to the current form “Development Agricultural Groups: GDAs.” In spite of these institutional changes, GDAs are suffering from several problems impeding their functioning such as budgetary deficit, conflicts between stakeholders, leaving of irrigated activity by some farmers, and inequality. The current situation of GDA and most IA hypothesizes the existence of local governance problems; these governance problems are causing a performance decrease in IA. The analysis of the interdependence between governance and performance of irrigation water management, in Nadhour IA, is the main aim of this paper. To conduct this analysis, the strategic analysis approach was adopted. Assuming that IA forms a concrete action system, the analysis of structured games between actors allowed assessing their power, convergence, divergence, and ambivalence. Results confirm the hypothesis of a significant effect of governance problems, including political source, on the performance of water management in IA.     

Fragmenting regimes: how water quality regulation is changing political-economic landscapes

Conflicts over water quality regulation are entering local economic development policy and re-shaping political-economic landscapes. Across the United States, decentralizing scales of regulation, scientific uncertainty, and increasing citizen participation are creating new regulatory contexts. Using regime and regulation theory, I address how regulation of the environment is altering economic regimes and creating new alliances among stakeholders. The research shows the dominant regime in the state of Ohio, a pro-growth stakeholder coalition between point source businesses (including electric utilities and municipal sewage treatment plants) and real estate development interests, is fragmenting. At the same time, there is a policy coalition emerging between environmentalists and government staff that is advocating for nonpoint source water pollution regulation. These emergent coalitions exemplify the changing nature of environmental regulation and economic regimes.     

Changes in the location of the United States Defence industrial base: Analyses of causative factors

During the last few decades international diffusion of the industrial activities among the established and the newly industrialized countries has occurred. Concurrently, the United States (US) has lost some of its status as the dominant industrial power in the World's markets. These changes have forced the US Department of Defence to surrender, at least partly, one of its principal strategic tenets, that of placing the reliance for its defence goods and services almost exclusively on the supplying entities located within the boundaries of the US.To a significant extent, these developments have come about as the result of the US policies not to intervene in the nation's and world's markets, and a deliberate and comprehensive intervention via policies, laws, and regulations in such markets by the governments of the other countries, including the US allies. The significant reduction of the military threat from the former Soviet Union may already have altered the conduct of the economic policies and defence strategies by the US, by its allies and by other nations.It is reasonable to assume that the US will see the continuation of international collaboration in the development, design and production of the future weapons systems. The former US allies and the other industrial nations, on the other hand, are in quest for further expansion of these industrial bases, and show limited interest in the further collaborative effect in the development of the future weapons systems.Unless appropriate co-operative economic and strategic policies are implemented, the emerging conflicts among the US, its allied and other industrial nations, presently in their infancy, may develop into a more intense confrontation among the world's industrialized nations. If this takes place, the US will be forced to abandon its laissez-faire policies, limit access to its markets and curtail the international diffusion of its industrial entities. The ultimate result of these developments may be geoeconomic conflicts among the industrial nations.This article is adopted from chapter in a forthcoming volume,Political and Geo-economic Issues Confronting the United States, the European Community, and Japan by Ewan W. Anderson and Ivars Gutmanis.     

能源转型背景下不可忽视的新能源:天然氢

世界能源结构正面临着从化石能源向非化石能源过渡的第3次转变,氢气作为易燃且燃烧时不产生污染的清洁能源,将在其中起到重要作用.目前,氢的工业生产主要通过煤、天然气等化石燃料以及电解水制取,对天然氢的勘探开发刚刚起步,仅在非洲马里开采出天然氢.但是,天然氢已在世界各地被陆续发现,据相关文献报道:天然氢可能来源于深源、水岩反...     

Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs): Geographies of financial inclusion in the US and UK

The financial exclusion of enterprise is a concept that has been largely neglected by economic geographers. This is surprising given the attention dedicated to personal financial exclusion and alternative sources of finance. This paper compares financial inclusion policies in deprived areas of the United States (US) and United Kingdom (UK) through the example of Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs). CDFIs help overcome financial exclusion by providing local sources of loan finance to micro, small-and-medium-sized enterprises and social enterprises. Drawing upon interviews with key actors within the CDFI sector in the US and UK respectively, the paper aims to compare the CDFI landscape across the US and UK through the provision of finance for enterprise. This is in order to understand the geographies of finance that are being created by such alternative financial institutions thereby contributing to financial inclusion debates. The research concludes that although CDFIs do provide an important source of finance to excluded enterprises, policy initiatives have created uneven geographical coverage and market gaps leaving marked spaces of financial exclusion.     

Water and poverty in the United States

Contrary to reports of 100% access to safe water and sanitation in international surveys, the United States (US) has a complex landscape of low-income water problems. This paper begins with a critical international perspective on water and poverty in the US. It shows that the US had a declining role in international water programs during the late-20th century, which contributed to limited international awareness of low-income water programs in the US, and limited US awareness of low-income water issues. To address the first problem, we provide an overview of low-income water programs in the US with an emphasis on those that serve small communities. We then examine census data on inadequate water systems in Colorado, which indicate that severe plumbing deficiencies persist despite these public water programs. Inadequate plumbing rates are lower than income poverty rates, however, which indicate partially successful strategies for achieving low-income water services. Analysis of local data in urban, rural, and mountainous areas of the state shows that poverty and water problems are correlated in complex ways, which has implications for all nations striving for universal access to safe water and sanitation.     

Origin,discovery, exploration and development status and prospect of global natural hydrogen under the background of “carbon neutrality”

Global energy structure is experiencing the third transition from fossil energy to non-fossil energy, to solve future energy problems, cope with climate change, and achieve net-zero emissions targets by 2050. Hydrogen is considered to be the most potential clean energy in this century under the background of carbon neutrality. At present, the industrial methods for producing hydrogen are mainly by steam-hydrocarbon (such as coal and natural gas) reforming and by electrolysis of water, while the exploration and development of natural hydrogen had just started. According to this literature review: (1) Natural hydrogen can be divided into three categories, including free hydrogen, hydrogen in inclusions and dissolved hydrogen; (2) natural hydrogen could be mainly from abiotic origins such as by deep-seated hydrogen generation, water-rock reaction or water radiolysis; (3) natural hydrogen is widely distributed and presents great potential, and the potential natural hydrogen sources excluding deep source of hydrogen is about (254±91)×10⁹ m³/a according to a latest estimate; (4) at present, natural hydrogen has been mined in Mali, and the exploration and development of natural hydrogen has also been carried out in Australia, Brazil, the United States and some European countries, to find many favorable areas and test some technical methods for natural hydrogen exploration. Natural hydrogen is expected to be an important part of hydrogen energy production in the future energy pattern. Based on a thorough literature review, this study introduced the origin, classification, and global discovery of natural hydrogen, as well as summarized the current global status and discussed the possibility of natural hydrogen exploration and development, aiming to provide reference for the future natural hydrogen exploration and development.©2022 China Geology Editorial Office.     

Origin and influence of coal mine drainage on streams of the United States

Degradation of water quality related to oxidation of iron disulfide minerals associated with coal is a naturally occurring process that has been observed since the late seventeenth century, many years before commencement of commercial coal mining in the United States. Disturbing coal strata during mining operations accelerates this natural deterioration of water quality by exposing greater surface areas of reactive minerals to the weathering effects of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Degraded water quality in the temperate eastern half of the United States is readily detected because of the low mineralization of natural water. Maps are presented showing areas in the eastern United States where concentrations of chemical constituents in water affected by coal mining (pH, dissolved sulfate, total iron, total manganese) exceed background values and indicate effects of coal mining. Areas in the East most affected by mine drainage are in western Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, western Maryland, West Virginia, southern Illinois, western Kentucky, northern Missouri, and southern Iowa. Effects of coal mining on water quality in the more arid western half of the United States are more difficult to detect because of the high degree of mineralization of natural water. Normal background concentrations of constituents are not useful in evaluating effects of coal mine drainage on streams in the more arid West. Three approaches to reduce the effects of coal mining on water quality are: (1) exclusion of oxygenated water from reactive minerals, (2) neutralization of the acid produced, (3) retardation of acid-producing bacteria population in spoil material, by application of detergents that do not produce byproducts requiring disposal. These approaches can be used to help prevent further degradation of water quality in streams by future mining.     

美国20世纪洪水损失分析及中美90年代比较研究

分析了美国20世纪洪水损失的演变情况及洪水损失对国民经济的影响,探讨了美国的洪水响应政策,并对中国和美国20世纪90年代的洪水损失进行比较研究.主要结论如下:①美国20世纪年均洪水损失以1.58%的增长率缓慢上升,20世纪末年均损失约为55.6亿美元;②洪水损失占GDP的比重逐渐下降,由20世纪30年代的0.334%下降到90年代的0.068%;③美国许多重大洪水政策的调整几乎都与特大洪水发生有关,呈由"遏制洪水"、"控制洪水"发展到"洪水管理"的演变历程;④通过比较研究发现,整个90年代是中国和美国洪水频发的时期,中国的年均洪水损失为1343.1亿元,损失占全国GDP的2.386%;而美国年均洪水损失虽然也达到了55.6亿美元,但只占全美GDP的0.068%;洪水对中国国民经济的影响远远大于对美国的影响.     

The geography of multiple scarcities: Urban development and water problems in Lima,Peru

The paper discusses the contradictory evolution of water services and the politicised nature of water scarcity in Lima, the capital of Peru. It initially claims that water scarcity cannot be understood as an isolated phenomenon, but it is inserted in a wider multiplicity of scarcities that characterise contemporary urban development. The naturalisation of scarcity in the official policy discourse is then criticised for its tendency to overlook interconnected mechanisms of political differentiation and socioeconomic exploitation that influence the allocation and use of water. Against such reductionist readings, the analysis employs a non-essentialist interpretation of multiple scarcities related to water and emphasises the need to address the totality of the experience of scarcity. Based on qualitative fieldwork, which explored recent institutional reforms and the daily struggle for water in the periphery of Lima, three fundamental reasons were identified for the persistence of water scarcity: first, the expansion of water problems as a result of the poor quality of housing and the discriminatory practices against low-income residents; second, the modest improvements in water services provided by public investment programmes, which have primarily aimed to answer political and electoral demands of the ruling party; and third, the technocratic basis of new management approaches and the systematic exclusion of grassroots communities from the decision-making process. Genuine responses to the mounting water problems of Lima require a more critical appreciation of the production of circumstantial abundances and totalising scarcities in the city.     

Poverty and Disasters in the United States: A Review of Recent Sociological Findings

This article synthesizes the literature on poverty and disasters in the United States and presents the results from a wide range of studies conducted over the past twenty years. The findings are organized into eight categories based on the stages of a disaster event. The review illustrates how people of different socioeconomic statuses perceive, prepare for, and respond to natural hazard risks, how low-income populations may be differentially impacted, both physically and psychologically, and how disaster effects vary by social class during the periods of emergency response, recovery, and reconstruction. The literature illustrates that the poor in the United States are more vulnerable to natural disasters due to such factors as place and type of residence, building construction, and social exclusion. The results have important implications for social equity and recommendations for future research and policy implementation are offered.     

United States international policies and military strategies in the era of defunct aggressor

In the post-Soviet era, the United States (US) is expected to contribute its military forces and defense resources in the event of need for Regional Conflicts and Operations Other Than War (OOTW). Such contributions may not be forthcoming. The principal reasons for the possible absence to the US contributions to maintain the New World Order is the paucity in the articulation of the US foreign and defense policies. The US public's well known preference for domestic policies, rather than foreign military and related operations, has been reinforced by the absence of the comprehensive explanation by the US political leaders of the US foreign and defense policies to the American people. The US military are preparing military doctrine for the possible engagements in the Regional Conflicts and OOTW, but these efforts are affected by the US well established past military doctrine to fight wars to a clear victory on the battlefield as well as by the absence of clear national military policy. American particulation in the future military operations — Regional Conflicts or OOTW — remains very much in doubt.     

华北平原水资源紧缺情势与因源

基于水资源可持续利用理念,从水资源承载能力演化周期性、经济社会需用水规模难变性和未来水资源供需关系入手,介绍近60年以来华北平原水资源情势,特别是该平原水资源量、实际用水量和地下水开采量变化特征,并结合未来10到30年区域经济社会发展需用水量趋势,识别和诊断华北平原水资源紧缺因源。结果表明：由于降水量减少导致华北平原缺水（自然资源性缺水）占该平原总缺水量的15.1%~16.4%;因管理缺陷导致水资源浪费的缺水（管理性缺水）占22.1%~24.2%;人口数量和经济社会发展规模过大导致用水量超过区域水资源承载力的缺水（政策性缺水）占59.3%~62.5%。自然资源性、管理性以及政策性缺水的解决对策不同：自然资源性缺水是不依人的意志为转移的,惟有从外域适量调水才能解决;管理性缺水可通过社会文明进步和科技进步不断修正;政策性缺水宜因势利导进行经济社会布局和产业结构调整,特别是限制高耗低效用水产业。即使南水北调工程70.3×108m3/a水进入华北平原,该平原地下水超采情势也难以得到根本性扭转。有新增水源调入或华北平原严控生活和工业用水量,同时大幅压减农业用水量,因势利导优化和逐步调整经济社会布局和产业结构,特别是灌溉农业进行规模化减蒸、降耗、节水的改造,将是缓解华北平原地下水超采和水资源紧缺的根本所在。     

中国页岩气开发的实质性突破

页岩气是指吸附在页岩中的天然气或自生自储在页岩纳米孔隙中连续聚集的天然气。新世纪以来,美国发生的页岩气革命影响了世界油气资源格局; 中国的非常规油气储存量非常可观,是世界上具有页岩气可采储量最大的国家; 但页岩气地质条件、水平钻井、分段压裂等技术储备和页岩气管理经验等还面临很大挑战。近年来,中国大力推进页岩气的开发利用,中石化、中石油和延长油田三家公司在示范区块开发的成功,以及短时间内在勘探开发方面取得的技术突破,标志着中国页岩气的开发已取得了实质性突破。但中国今后是否采取页岩气开发对多元资本开放的模式,还需要进一步研讨。     

The new freely-associated states of micronesia: Their natural and social environmental challenges

The former United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) which has been administered by the United States since the end of World War II, has divided itself up into four separate political entities: (1) the Federated States of Micronesia, (2) the Republic of Belau, (3) the Marshall Islands Republic, and (4) the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The first three of these aforementioned entities are freely-associated states with the United States. This is a new form of political arrangement for these areas and it is also new for the United States. All of these areas have a colonial history of domination by Spain, Germany, Japan, and the US, and these colonial powers have all left legacies which the new states have to deal with. There are also a number of natural environmental factors — such as vast distance and the limited store of natural resources - which are constraints that the new states have to face and overcome with the help of the former colonial powers and the rest of the world. Whether or not these new states can be successful in their continued economic and social development at a pace rapid enough to bring sufficient foreign capital, depends on their own energy and also on the nature and quality of the outside assistance.     

The sharing of scarce water resources

Australians have long been sensitive about water problems, and water management has been a highly politicised activity. The ‘making the desert bloom’ dream affected Australia as it did the Western United States. The 1950s and 1960s witnessed an extraordinary surge of engineering activity in major water development projects that could not be justified when proper economic analyses of the costs and resultant benefits were conducted. In this paper it will be argued that the ‘engineering fix’ approach owed its existence to the unanimous, unchallenged belief in the scarcity of Australia's water resources. The evidence and rationale for this belief are examined and it is argued that water is not scarce in a physical sense. However, the collection, storage and distribution of supplies are costly and economic scarcity exists, partly a product of resource misallocation and subsidised use.     

Improving school children’s understanding of water scarcity with a co-produced book on groundwater in Central Chile

Water scarcity is a critical issue worldwide, and Chile is no exception. Since 2010, Central Chile has been enduring an ongoing water crisis due to the coupled effects of a severe drought and the overuse of water resources, especially groundwater. Rural communities have been strongly impacted, mainly because wells from which drinking water is supplied show a dramatic drop in water levels, and some have even dried up. The water scarcity scenario requires the integration of actors and disciplines to increase awareness of groundwater; however, how to make this valuable element visible in society is an issue that remains open to debate. This paper describes and reflects on the process of making educational material about groundwater and water scarcity for children to promote public awareness. Based on transdisciplinary and co-designing processes, this work describes the social perceptions of groundwater among children and community leaders, as well as how scientific information and local knowledge of water scarcity could be integrated into a book for the young population. This research finds that educational projects on groundwater resources increase people’s awareness of the role of this hidden resource in the water cycle. Such projects encourage the creation of grounded and contextualised materials that incorporate the knowledge and experience already present in the communities, increasing public awareness of the role of groundwater and associated water scarcity issues, thereby integrating academia and society. This approach could be a tool to lay the foundations for successfully addressing the water crisis in Chile over generations.