Exploring price effects on the residential water conservation technology diffusion process: a case study of Tianjin city
Junying CHU1, Hao WANG1, Can WANG2()
1. State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of River Basin Water Cycle, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China; 2. State Key Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control (SKLESPC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Reforms of the water pricing management system and the establishment of a flexible water pricing system are significant for cities in northern China to tackle their critical water issues. The WATAP (Water conservation Technology Adoption Processes) model is developed in order to capture the water conservation technology adoption process under different price scenarios with disaggregate water demands down to the end use level. This model is explicitly characterized by the technological selection process under maximum marginal benefit assumption by different categories of households. In particular, when households need to purchase water devices in the provision market with the consideration of complex factors such as the life span, investment and operating costs of the device, as well as the regulated water price by the government. Applied to Tianjin city, four scenarios of water price evolutions for a long-term perspective (from year 2011 to 2030) are considered, including BAU (Business As Usual), SP1 (Scenario of Price increase with constant annual rate), SP2 (Scenario of Price increase every four years) and SP3 (Scenario of Price increase with affordable constraint), considering many factors such as historic trends, affordability and incentives for conservation. Results show that on aggregate 2.3%, 11.0% and 18.2% of fresh water can be saved in the residential sector in scenario SP1, SP2 and SP3, respectively, compared with the BAU scenario in the year 2030. The water price signals can change the market shares of different water appliances, as well as the water end use structure of households, and ultimately improve water use efficiency. The WATAP model may potentially be a helpful tool to provide insights for policy makers on water conservation technology policy analysis and assessment.
Corresponding Author(s):
WANG Can,Email:canwang@tsinghua.edu.cn
Issue Date: 01 October 2013
Cite this article:
Junying CHU,Hao WANG,Can WANG. Exploring price effects on the residential water conservation technology diffusion process: a case study of Tianjin city[J]. Front Envir Sci Eng,
0, (): 688-698.
statistic yearbooks, regional development planning report
KWSx,n
the technological water conservation ratio for n type of end use x
%
market survey
LPx,n
technological water conservation potential for n type of water device x
L·d-1
market survey
R
the government long-term bond rate
/
[19]
LFx,n
the life-span of n type of water device x
a
market survey
INVx,n
capital cost of n type of water device x
CNY·a-1
market survey
OPEx,n
O&M cost of n type of water device x
CNY·a-1
market survey
Tx,n
the available time for n type of water device x
a
expert judgmenta)
URTt
the proportion of irrational households to total households
%
market survey
Tab.1 Details on inputs and parameters of the WATAP model
Fig.2 Comparisons of model outputs and observations of household water use from 2004 to 2010 in Tianjin
Fig.3 Water price variations in Tianjin compared with Beijing from 2009 to 2012. The water price is the tap water price plus wastewater fees, the same below
Fig.4 Future water price scenarios in Tianjin compared with historic data
Fig.5 Incremental cost of device replacement in Tianjin. TRD-STD: traditional type changes to standard type; STD-HEF: standard type changes to high-efficiency type; TRD-HEF: traditional type directly changing to high-efficiency type; REU: reused water for toilet flushing
Fig.6 End water use structures for different types of water devices in Tianjin. LUI denotes the water use per capita in year 2004, i.e .
Fig.7 Market penetration of different types of toilets in BAU scenario
Fig.8 Market penetration of different types of showers in BAU scenario
Fig.9 Market penetration of different types of washing machines in BAU scenario
Fig.10 Market penetration of different types of faucets in BAU scenario
Fig.11 Market penetration of STD type washing machines compared with scenarios. STD: standard water conservation devices
Fig.12 Market penetration of HEF type washing machines compared with scenarios. HEF: high-efficiency water conservation devices
Fig.13 Aggregate residential fresh water usage dynamics in Tianjin
Fig.14 Aggregate residential reused water usage dynamics in Tianjin
Fig.15 Residential daily fresh water use per capita in Tianjin compared with scenarios from the year 2011 to 2030
Fig.16 Structures of water end use under different scenarios in Tianjin compared between the years 2004 and 2030
Fig.17 Changes in price elasticity for different scenarios compared with the BAU scenario in Tianjin
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