Can the Environment Wait Priorities for East Asia

World Bank Technical Paper No. 395. Water scarcity is likely to continue to be a major problem for many cities in developing as well as industrial countries. The intense competition for water that results from population growth, urban expansion, and lifestyle changes may affect various decisions associated with water allocation and long-term investments. This paper suggests a framework of intrasectoral water transfer based on a pricing scheme that induces water savings under severe water scarcity conditions in urban centers. The paper provides a general framework for evaluating the effectiveness of water pricing that can be applied to other urban centers around the world.World Bank Staff is the author of 'Can the Environment Wait Priorities for East Asia' with ISBN 9780821341582 and ISBN 0821341588.