A Spatial Model of Optimal Water Conveyance

Most water projects suffer from losses in conveyance. Because conveyance has public good characteristics, investment in reducing conveyance losses must be provided by a central authority. This paper develops a spatial model to determine optimal conveyance investment, water allocation, and investment in firm-specific conservation technology. The efficiency and distributional characteristics of the optimal solution are compared to projects with (i) well-developed water markets and (ii) spatially uniform water prices, both with sub-optimal conveyance. A numerical illustration is provided.