The Equity of Water Distribution Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Equity of Water Distribution - Assignment Example In 1998, Houston’s water customers consume 1.35 million cubic meters of water per day. The former maximum daily pumpage, recorded in July of 1986, was 1.79 million cubic meters per day. More recently, however, Houston had pumped an all-time record high of 1.96 million cubic meters per day, during the heat wave in 1998. Houston uses water for retail consumption, irrigation, and industrial purposes. Presently, long dry spells have necessitated conservation efforts to extend available water supply. For the Sugar Land area, to reduce peak demand and total water consumption, Sugar Land residents are asked to water lawns according to the following schedule: Surat is located at the mouth of the river in floodplains and during the monsoon season, it is the site of the concentration of water flow. Water is used for agriculture, drinking, water supply industries and energy generation. Its water supply is provided by the Ukai dam, which, save for the annual lean season, is not short of supply due to the annual monsoon that brings heavy rainfall and flooding (Bhat, 2011). Recently the Maranoa Regional Council introduced a new water pricing system for residential and business customers. The new consumption based system calls for the payment of a fixed service fee for ongoing connection, to which is added a charge for every kilolitre of water used. However, the Council has excluded Surat from the new pricing system; instead, the residents and business will be allocated an annual volume for use, with the excess charge to apply only for the use of additional kilolitres over the allocation. The system is designed to cover the higher fixed costs of operating Surat’s dual reticulation system and river water treatment process. The higher cost of treatment is due to the fact that Surat’s water is drawn from the Balonne river instead of a bore, requiring a more expensive method of treatment.