Water Scarcity and Economic Growth Connection in Australia

Abstract:     
Water available for human consumption is less than 0.3 per cent of the total water available throughout the world. Water is important for human sustenance as well as economic development of any country but most importantly, water is required in every aspect of our daily life. Australia’s history clearly demonstrates the connection between water and agricultural production. Manufacturing businesses and mining business too requires water at various stages of the production (Dinar et al., 2007).

However, Australia records the lowest amount of rainfall compared to any other continent (Connell, 2007). The water shortage created by the climate change has affected Australia in various regions. The most affected area has been southern Australia, especially the Murray-Darling Basin. Today, the glaring problem of water scarcity in Australia has affected the economic growth as well as the environment. To solve this problem water markets have sprung up in Australia that allocates water efficiently to maintain economic growth.

This paper seeks to understand the various problems created by lack of water in Australia and how the water markets can be effectively used to rein the problems.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 6

Keywords: chenoy ceil, water scarcity, Australia, advocate, chenoyceil

working papers series