This article [gated] from the American Water Works Association has a promising title (”Water resources technologies for sustainable water planning”) and overview statement:

The article describes a wide range of technologies and programs that can be considered when adapting a portfolio of strategies to include the most cost-effective and easily implemented approaches for delivering safe and reliable services to water utility customers.

But early promises are not fulfilled. Most of the article is about technology “solutions” (reclamation, desalination, storage, etc.) for sustainability. It spends only a little time on demand-side approaches, and — even then — is dismissive:

Most progressive water utilities have now institutionalized water conservation programs as a prerequisite to developing supply-side approaches. Demand management initiatives include flow control, water loss control, production and consumption metering, establishing supply versus demand policy, development of conservation pricing, and rate structures, training, public education, and development of conservation specific regulations.

That bunch of words doesn’t add up to any conclusion for me. In fact, I’d say that hardly ANY water utilities have explored the “prerequisite” demand programs (higher prices, for instance). I guess that “progressive” water utilities are rarer than I thought!

Of course, this article was written in a trade journal by engineers from Black and Veatch — one of the largest sellers of supply-side services. They have an incentive to emphasize “solutions” that they sell!

The sad thing is that water managers will use this “analysis” to justify spending more money on engineering projects!

Bottom Line: Before you build a new dam, desal plant or reclamation project, make sure that you are charging the right price for “scarce” water!