ASSESSING THE ECONOMIC-BENEFITS OF GROUND-WATER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL-POLICY DECISIONS

The full range of environmental and economic services of ground water need to be accounted for in policy decisions. Non-recognition of these services imputes a lower value for the ground water resource in estab lishing policies. We describe a conceptual framework for identifying a nd measuring the economic value of goundwater. The valuation framework links changes in physical characteristics of ground water to services provided by ground water and the economic effects of changes in groun d water services. In addition to the framework, we develop a general p rotocol to follow for assessing the benefits of ground water policies. Application of the protocol will aid in establishing structure and co nsistency across policy assessments and improve the accuracy and compl eteness of benefit estimates, avoid double-counting problems, and elim inate duplication of ground water valuation efforts.