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Buying river water rights from someone that has an existing claim (rather than just installing a pump and taking 'free' water from the aquifer). It's not that t
by mechagodzilla 3y ago
Buying river water rights from someone that has an existing claim (rather than just installing a pump and taking 'free' water from the aquifer). It's not that there isn't any water at all, it's just that the water is spoken for (frequently for relatively low return activities like alfalfa farming).
- lumost 3y agowon't this create a market for water rights? provided rights are limited and transferable, we would expect that higher value use cases would purchase the rights over time.
- thedaly 3y agoOne would think, but scarcity keeps the value high, and places with water rights are seen as a great investment. https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/22/business/southwest-water-colorado-river-wall-street-climate/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/22/business/southwest-water-colo...
- HarryHirsch 3y agoGood luck with that. We getting a good view how markets with constrained supply work with Ozempic. On one side you have people with diabetes and circulation problems who need it as a medication to keep all their bodily appendages, and on the other side are have Elon Musk & friends who push it as if it were stimulant because they can't control their food intake. Now try this with water. Agriculture vs golf course communities, good luck!
- hedora 3y agoThe article says that they're going to require new houses to draw 100% of water from the Colorado river, and that Phoenix is one of the fastest growing cities in the US. Of course, Arizona has simultaneously promised to cut usage of river water. I'm guessing the local government is betting that possession is 9/10ths of ownership when it comes to water rights, and they plan to simply ignore interstate water rights moving forward.