Urban water pricing: practical perspectives and customer preferences (journal article)
by Lin Crase, Sue O'Keefe and Brian Dollery
from Economic Papers, Vol 27 No 2 June 2008, pp. 194-206
There is considerable variation between Australian jurisdictions in their approach to urban water and waste-water pricing. Regardless of the explicit commitments of signatories to the National Water Initiative to 'best practice pricing' in 2004, there are no obvious signs that a common and efficient pricing regime is emerging. This paper considers one of the dimensions of urban water tariffs: the split between 'volumetric' and 'access' charges."
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Some emerging issues in urban water supply and pricing (journal article)
by John Freebairn
from Economic Papers, Vol 27 No. 2 June 2008, pp. 184-193
"In the future, the marginal cost curve for urban water will be an increasing function. This fact favours a single volumetric water price to meet both equity and revenue adequacy criteria, and in some cities an explicit resource rent tax should be imposed. Although desalination and recycled water are likely to be more expensive than rain-fed water, their comparative stability and security of supply gives them a stabilisation value, and in a portfolio model framework there is a good case for their inclusion as a component of urban water supply."
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Biofuels or biofertilisers? Agriculture's contribution to reducing emissions (article)
By Brian Chatterton
from Australian Options Autumn 2008, pp. 27 - 29
"The program to develop bio-ethanol in the United States is a triumph of the lobbyist's art over rationality. Most of the powerful pressure groups have been mollified but the scheme is fundamentally flawed and should not be used as a model for Australian efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
Population and Sustainability: A global role for Australia (article)
By John Coulter
from Australia Options Autumn 2008, pp. 22 - 26
"There is abundant evidence that Australians are not living in an environmentally sustainable manner. Too many are demanding too much from Nature but every government in Australia seeks more people and more economic growth, a surrogate measure of environmental demand."
IT training's impact on the bottom line (journal article)
by Eddie Kilkelly
From Training Journal, July 2008, pp. 47-51
The author discusses the ramifications of having an IT department that is not fully skilled, and the benefits of providing comprehensive training and support.
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One Good Big Idea for Water Reform
By Scott Hargreaves
from Policy Vol 24 No 2 Winter 2008, pp. 26-31
"The article reports on the water supply and disposal reforms in Australia particularly the creation of a national regime for third-party access pipes. In this system, the owners of water and wastewater pipelines transmit water at regulated prices for customers. Furthermore, the Australian government should help facilitate in the reforms in water distribution and allocation."
Biofuels - at what cost? : government support for ethanol and biodiesel in Australia [electronic book]
By: Derek Quirke and others, International Institute for Sustainable Development. Global Subsidies Initiative
A critical examination at the Australian government’s support for the biofuel industry.
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