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The demand for tap water quality: Survey evidence on water hardness and aesthetic quality

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  • Bruno Lanz
  • Allan Provins

Abstract

We carry out a survey to provide quantitative evidence about households' demand for qualitative aspects of tap water supply. We focus on two characteristics that are of importance for households: water hardness and aesthetic quality in terms of taste, smell and appearance. Our survey administration targets a representative sample of the population in England and Wales, and aims to elicit expenditures on products that improve the overall experience with these aspects of water quality. For water hardness, we find that around 14% of households employ at least one water softener device or purchase products such as softening tablets or descaling agents. For aesthetic quality of tap water, around 39% of households report some averting behaviour, the most common being the use of filtering devices, purchase of bottled water, or addition of squash or cordial. To study how expenditures on these products vary with the level of service quality, we match household data to highly disaggregated records on regional water hardness (in mg CaCO3/l) and aesthetic quality, as measured by the regional rate of complaints. Our econometric analysis suggests that households' decision to incur averting expenditures varies with service quality in a statistically and economically significant manner, providing novel evidence that utility customers actively respond to non-health related utility service provision.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruno Lanz & Allan Provins, 2014. "The demand for tap water quality: Survey evidence on water hardness and aesthetic quality," CIES Research Paper series 23-2014, Centre for International Environmental Studies, The Graduate Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:gii:ciesrp:cies_rp_23
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    Cited by:

    1. Lanz, Bruno & Provins, Allan, 2017. "Using averting expenditures to estimate the demand for public goods: Combining objective and perceived quality," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 20-35.
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    3. Józef Ober & Janusz Karwot, 2021. "Tap Water Quality: Seasonal User Surveys in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-22, June.
    4. Robert Hahn & Robert Metcalfe & Florian Rundhammer, 2020. "Promoting customer engagement: A new trend in utility regulation," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 14(1), pages 121-149, January.
    5. Vanaja, Shiuli, 2021. "Are People Making Correct Choices? Drivers of Water Source Choices in Rural Jharkhand, India," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315156, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Water demand; Water quality; Water hardness; Revealed preferences; Averting behaviour; Cost-benefit analysis;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q25 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Water
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • C83 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs - - - Survey Methods; Sampling Methods
    • L95 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Gas Utilities; Pipelines; Water Utilities
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation

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