Assessment of Irrigation Pricing Policies: A Data Envelopment Analysis Approach
Autor
Prosperi, Maurizio
Giannoccaro, Giacomo
Martín-Ortega, Julia
Alcón, Francisco
Editor
Canadian Center of Science and EducationFecha
2013Materia
Eco-efficiencyData development analysis
Water pricing scheme
Irrigation
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The European Water Framework Directive encourages pricing policy reforms in order to protect the
environmental quality of water and promote its efficient use. This paper deals with two aspects of efficiency,
namely economic and environmental efficiency, analyzed for different pricing methods. Volumetric pricing
methods are compared with other indirect schemes (‘per area’, on ‘input’, on ‘output’ and ‘quota’) under three
different water saving scenarios. The Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) technique is used to assess the
eco-efficiency of an eventual water pricing reform in the irrigated agricultural system of Capitanata, in Italy.
Overall, findings point out that a pricing system based on ‘per area’ and ‘output’ will lead to the highest
eco-efficiency, although this is not valid under any water pricing charge. The enforcement of water saving via
pricing does not imply a higher eco-efficiency, mainly in the case of environmental efficiency. The use of the
DEA approach appears useful in the assessment of water pricing policies where conflictive economic and
environmental goals arise. It provides a methodology to support policy makers in the design of water policy
pricing aimed at the enhancement of efficiency, both economic and environmental