Citation:
García De Jalón S, González Del Tánago M, Alonso C, García De Jalón D, Water pricing: are 'polluters' paying the environmental costs of flow regulation?, Proceedings of 15th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, 31st August - 2nd September 2017, Rhodes, Greece, 2 September 2017, paper number CEST2017_00789
Abstract:
River ecosystems are severely affected by dams and reservoirs. The Water Framework Directive states that
polluters should be financially responsible for the caused environmental damage. Nevertheless, the environmental costs associated to flow regulation often are not fully paid by water users. This study presents an approach to value the environmental costs of flow regulation based on the "polluter pays" principle, i.e., the amount to be paid should be proportional to the caused environmental impact. The procedure includes three major steps: (i) assessing the admissible range of regulated flow variability based on flow data during the pre-dam period, (ii) estimating the daily environmental impact of regulated flows according to the resulting hydrological change in terms of the intensity, duration and frequency of the impact, and (iii) calculating the environmental costs of flow regulation subject to spatiotemporal characteristics. This paper applies the proposed methodology in the Luna River, Spain. The advantages over other water cost valuation methodologies are discussed. The approach enlarges the current recognition of water environmental costs and represents a simple and practical management tool for achieving the objectives of the Water Framework Directive.