Causes of Domestic Water Consumption Trends in the City of Alicante: Exploring the Links between the Housing Bubble, the Types of Housing and the Socio-Economic Factors

Seguido, Álvaro Francisco Morote; Hernández, María Hernández; Amorós, Antonio M. Rico

doi:10.3390/w8090374

Cited by 51 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…The study by [2] found that the water consumption per capita in Santa Ponça was 771 l/p/d, and 188 l/p/d in El Toro (near Son Ferrer and with a similar housing typology). However, the values obtained in Santa Ponça are quite similar to the 409 l/p/d obtained for detached houses in expansive low-density developments (with a private garden and a swimming pool) in Alicante, which is a tourist region with similar characteristics [3].…”

Section: Water Consumption In the Three Housing Typologiessupporting

confidence: 77%

“…Therefore, the aggregate data of the residential and floating populations are used to determine the urban water demand in the hydrological plans. It is well known that tourists consume more water than the local population [1][2][3][4]. However, official statistics frequently fail to differentiate this from the domestic water consumption [5], or to take into account the fact that the increasing number of residents and some housing typologies (especially high-income residential houses) increase the pressure on water resources [6][7][8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Analysis of Water Tariff Reform on Water Consumption in Different Housing Typologies in Calvià (Mallorca)

Deyà-Tortella

García

Nilsson

et al. 2017

Water

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This study analyses water prices and residential water consumption using micro data for three different housing typologies in Calvià with contrasting household characteristics. We examine the effect of a price reform of the sanitation fee (implemented in 2013) on the average prices and their water consumption in each of the areas. Our results conclude that the aggregate water consumption decreased only during the year of the reform, but increased the following year. The increase in the amount of water consumed by the houses of higher standards of living was greater than the small decrease in water consumption by families with medium and low-medium incomes. Thus, the reform had a very modest effect as regards reducing water consumption, and many households increased their consumption despite the higher prices. From a water policy perspective, we recommend a water tariff scheme differentiated according to the housing characteristics in order to find the most effective and fairest way to save water.

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Section: Water Consumption In the Three Housing Typologiessupporting

confidence: 77%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Water Tariff Reform on Water Consumption in Different Housing Typologies in Calvià (Mallorca)

Deyà-Tortella

García

Nilsson

et al. 2017

Water

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“…In 2007, the length of the network totaled almost 1100 km; at the end of 2013, it had expanded an additional 35 km, while 72 km had been renovated. On the other hand, network efficiency rose from 80.49 percent in 1991 to 90 percent in 2015 [39,40] (see Figure 1). …”

Section: Case Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…obeying multiple interrelated causes, such as more efficient water fixtures and appliances; growing consumer awareness; smaller demographic and economic growth; and also the effects of rising prices and taxes, especially among low-income groups [40].…”

Section: Case Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…New opportunities for improving the economic performance of water companies may also arise from remote reading. As other water companies do, AMAEM is struggling with declining revenues after the fall in domestic water consumption of recent years [40,42]. In this sense, and according to the company managers, remote meter reading may not only contribute to reducing operation and maintenance costs for the company (including the regulation of water pressure), but also help in designing more flexible tariff schemes: either rethinking tariffs according to typology of users/consumption patterns or through tariffs differentiating water tariffs according to daily or weekly time periods.…”

Section: Potentialities and Limitations Of Smart Meters From The Persmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Household Smart Water Metering in Spain: Insights from the Experience of Remote Meter Reading in Alicante

et al. 2017

Self Cite

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Abstract:Since the past few years, the smart city paradigm has been influencing sustainable urban water resources management. Smart metering schemes for end users have become an important strategy for water utilities to have an in-depth and fine-grained knowledge about urban water use. Beyond reducing certain labor costs, such as those related to manual meter reading, such detailed and continuous flow of information is said to enhance network efficiency and improve water planning by having more detailed demand patterns and forecasts. Research focusing on those initiatives has been very prolific in countries such as Australia. However, less academic attention has been paid to the development of smart metering in other geographies. This paper focuses on smart water metering in Spain and, more particularly, documents and reflects on the experience of the city of Alicante (southeastern Spain), a pioneer case of massive deployment of remote reading of water meters at the household level and for large urban customers. Through data and interviews with water managers from the water utility, we shed light on the costs and early benefits, as well as the potentialities and (unexpected) problems of this technology to contribute to more sustainable urban water cycles.

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Natural revegetation and afforestation in abandoned cropland areas: Hydrological trends and changes in Mediterranean mountains

Khorchani

Nadal‐Romero

Lasanta

et al. 2021

Hydrological Processes

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Water resources availability is one of the main concerns for policy makers around the world in present and future management plans. In the Mediterranean basin, this concern is increased given the extreme variability in climate and the intrinsic aridity conditions. Water resources in the Mediterranean region depend mainly on surface and subsurface supply from mountain areas. Because evapotranspiration comprises a substantial portion of the water budget, recent land cover changes due to cropland abandonment may change transpiration (TRANS) and water supply. Therefore, land management plans must account for these potential hydrologic changes to guarantee water availability in the upcoming decades. Short-term changes to water yield have been shown to follow afforestation or natural revegetation, the main management strategies in abandoned cropland areas. Studies comparing long-term trends of these management practices, however, are scarce due to the lack of long-term hydrological data. In this study, we use the regional hydro-ecological simulation system (RHESSys), to analyse long-term changes and annual and seasonal trends in streamflow (STR) and transpiration following management of abandoned cropland areas. Annual mean values show significant differences between the three management scenarios for both streamflow and transpiration, while differences between climate scenarios are not significant. The Mann Kendall trend analysis shows significant changes to water yield compared to the situation before management. Depending on the total afforested area, afforestation could significantly decrease annual streamflow between 2.3%Ádecade À1 and 5.9%Ádecade À1 and increase annual transpiration between 1.1%Á decade À1 and 3.5%Ádecade À1 . These trends are attributed to changes during the first 30 years after management, while during the fourth and fifth decade, changes to water yield tend to stabilize or decrease. These results are substantial to optimize land management plans, ensuring sustainable hydrological and ecological ecosystem services.

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Causes of Domestic Water Consumption Trends in the City of Alicante: Exploring the Links between the Housing Bubble, the Types of Housing and the Socio-Economic Factors

Cited by 51 publications

References 41 publications

Analysis of Water Tariff Reform on Water Consumption in Different Housing Typologies in Calvià (Mallorca)

Analysis of Water Tariff Reform on Water Consumption in Different Housing Typologies in Calvià (Mallorca)

Household Smart Water Metering in Spain: Insights from the Experience of Remote Meter Reading in Alicante

Natural revegetation and afforestation in abandoned cropland areas: Hydrological trends and changes in Mediterranean mountains

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