Sustainable Water Management with Market-based Solutions

By using water markets we can shift water back to the environment while increasing the productivity of irrigated agriculture and meeting the water needs of cities.

Despite the technological innovations of the last century, natural resources—from fresh water and forests, to healthy soils and fisheries—are becoming exhausted as we rely on them to meet the food, water and energy needs of a global population that is expected to exceed 10 billion by 2050. 

But there is good news. Provided we are willing to change, it is possible to protect the natural capital of the planet for future generations while meeting human needs today.

There is no better example of this than the challenge of managing our limited water resources. Water touches every part of our global economy.

Without available, accessible water and its sustainable management, we could not produce food, clothe or shelter the world’s growing populations, nor power our cities and communities.

It is essential to our daily life, more so than any other natural resource.

Yet, the state of our global water resources is far from good.

More than 30 percent of the water sources that people depend on are over-exploited to near exhaustion—reservoirs and lakes are being drained, many aquifers have been sucked dry, and most rivers and streams have been over-diverted. Climate change further compounds the issue, as once dependable rainfall that replenished critical water supplies is now unreliable.

A new report issued by The Nature Conservancy, “Water Share: Using water markets and impact investing to drive sustainability,” shows an alternative path: one that starts with harnessing the power of well-regulated water markets to help us make more efficient and productive decisions.

Using water markets, we can shift water back to the environment, while increasing the productivity of irrigated agriculture and meeting the water needs of cities.

While water markets offer a way of mediating scarcity for commercial and public uses of water, who is going to act on behalf of nature?

The report shows that one way to do this is through the use of creative impact investment solutions, including Water Sharing Investment Partnerships (WSIPs).

The WSIP concept was created by The Nature Conservancy to advance strategic trading of water-use rights within select river and lake basins. A WSIP operates within an existing water market, using investor capital and other revenue sources to acquire water-use rights.

These rights can then be reallocated to nature, or sold or leased to other water users seeking more supplies. A well-balanced trading strategy can ensure that the WSIP generates financial returns for investors while also returning water to the environment.

Today, more than 90 percent of water consumption in water-scarce regions is for irrigated agriculture. If we are to meet the needs of a population expected to reach 10 billion by 2050, we must increase food production while freezing agriculture’s water footprint. As described in this new report, the use of water markets shows great promise.

If fully scaled, WSIPs could mobilize US$13.4 billion per year in transaction value to reallocate water, corresponding to an underlying assets value of US$331 billion. This is significant: by comparison, the entire water sector—inclusive of municipal utility systems—represents global annual expenditures of about US$500 billion.

There is a future where nature and people can thrive together, but only if significant changes occur in how people’s needs are met and in our relationship with nature. By solving the major challenges facing nature globally, such as those of agriculture’s growing footprint and water scarcity, we can address important and tangible challenges facing people, and demonstrate how investing in nature will help us achieve a healthier, more prosperous, more resilient world. 

Source: The Huffington Post