Market Allocation of Agricultural Water Resources in the Salinas River Valley
Abstract
The current drought conditions that the Central California coast has been facing and the increasing threat of saltwater intrusion have forced the Salinas Valley to consider alternatives that provide for conserving and allocating limited groundwater resources. Currently, groundwater resources are treated as a common pool resource where there are no clearly defined property rights for groundwater and there is no regulation of use. This thesis examines the question of how to implement a market system for groundwater in the Salinas Valley. The study compares a free-market approach of water allocation to other centralized water management practices. This study found that, in theory, the establishment of clearly defined groundwater rights and a free market system for groundwater would be an efficient method to allocate agricultural groundwater resources.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA245767
Entities
People
- John P. Neagley
- Robert T. O'brien Jr.
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School