Water Transactions for Streamflow Restoration,Water Supply Reliability,and Rural Economic Vitality in the Western United States |
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| Authors: | Eloise Kendy Bruce Aylward Laura S Ziemer Brian D Richter Bonnie G Colby Theodore E Grantham Leslie Sanchez Will B Dicharry Emily M Powell Season Martin Peter W Culp Leon F Szeptycki Carrie V Kappel |
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| Affiliation: | 1. North America Science, The Nature Conservancy, Helena, Montana;2. AMP Insights, Beaverton, Oregon;3. Trout Unlimited, Bozeman, Montana;4. Sustainable Waters, Crozet, Virginia;5. Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona;6. Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, California;7. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts;8. Stellar Science Ltd Co, Albuquerque, New Mexico;9. Global Water, The Nature Conservancy, Boise, Idaho;10. Colorado River Program, The Nature Conservancy, Boulder, Colorado;11. Culp & Kelly, LLP, Phoenix, Arizona;12. Water in the West, Stanford Woods Institute, Stanford, California;13. National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, Santa Barbara, California |
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| Abstract: | Across the western United States, environmental water transaction programs (EWTPs) restore environmental flows by acquiring water rights and incentivizing changes in water management. These programs have evolved over several decades, expanding from relatively simple two‐party transactions to multiobjective deals that simultaneously benefit the environment and multiple water‐using sectors. Such programs now represent an important water management tool and provide an impetus for collaboration among stakeholders; yet, most evaluations of their effectiveness focus exclusively on environmental outcomes, without adequate attention to impacts on other water users or local economies. To understand how these programs affect stakeholders, a systematic, multiobjective evaluation framework is needed. To meet this need, we developed a suite of environmental and socioeconomic indicators that can guide the design and track the implementation of water transaction portfolios, and we applied them to existing EWTPs in Oregon and Nevada. Application of the indicators quantifies impacts and helps practitioners design water transaction portfolios that avoid unintended consequences and generate mutually beneficial outcomes among environmental, agricultural, and municipal interests. |
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| Keywords: | environmental flows water scarcity economics water markets sustainability water allocation environmental indicators |
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