Today the National Water Commission launched their review of pricing reform in the Australian water sector and supporting reports including two Waterlines publications on scarcity and externality pricing in the urban water sector.
The review finds that, where implemented, water pricing reforms are making a positive contribution to achieving their intended outcomes. There are some areas that have not yet benefited from the full implementation of agreed reforms and some instances where the suitability and resilience of reforms have been strained, albeit under pressure from severe and prolonged drought. The review highlights that the objectives of water pricing in the future remain the same—that is, pricing should encourage economic efficiency in service delivery, investment and water use. However, the context has changed, particularly in the urban sector. The report makes nine recommendations on the future direction for water pricing reform.
Frontier (Australia) was contracted to the Commission to undertake the review of pricing reform and to develop the additional reports on scarcity and externality pricing.
For more information, please contact Marita O’Keeffe at m.okeeffe@frontier-economics.com.au or call +61 (0)3 9620 4488.
